{UAH} Pojim/WBK; The road to power is paved with hypocrisy and casualties
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The road to power is paved with hypocrisy and casualties
Jeremiah Kiereini and inset the cover of his biography titled A Daunting Journey. The book is, therefore, a story of (dis)closures. It is a search for closure that is bogged down by the consequences of disclosure. It is a story muted by fierce loyalties and (un)clear allegiances; a story told by a man who came of age in a time of upheavals and strict moral codes. PHOTO | NATION
In Summary
- Kiereini needed to publicly tell his side of that story. Now, at the age of 85 years, he takes a long-range perspective on the whole colonial project and his place in it.
- Kiereini's discomfort with the label "wealthy" is almost missionary, even though he proudly declares that in 1978 he bought a brand new Mercedes 450SLC sport with a dual exhaust system for Sh680,000. It was the era when his "generation developed odd ideas about status and money" and Kiereini gives us a glimpse into the kinds of investments that they made.
- Given the work he had done preparing missives from the Indian High Commission to sabotage the colonialist's war against Mau Mau, Kiereini feels he was wrongly labelled a traitor. He confesses to having taken the Mau Mau oath but when questioned over it he declared that as an "educated Christian the oath held no power over (him)".
- Kiereini's account of the Moi years is tortured by his determination to defend his role and to demonstrate the capriciousness of the regime without calling Moi names.
More by this Author
Jeremiah Kiereini was 16 years old when he built his first house. He lay down to savour this achievement and his success at the recent Kenya Primary Examination. His resolve was firm. It was time to marry his girlfriend.
But when his brother stormed into the room waving a letter from Alliance High School, the course of Kiereini's life was changed in an instant.
There was no time for explanations or farewells. Within minutes, and without a change of clothes or a pair of shoes, he was on a bus making the 96km journey to Kikuyu.
The world is full of these kinds of near-misses — who we should have married, might have married, almost married. But didn't. So aside from commonplace tales of this kind, why did Kiereini write his life story? In what ways has his life been unique?
Well, for starters, anyone who worked with the guru of Mau Mau rehabilitation, Terence Gavaghan – indeed, anyone who was consequently labelled "notorious" by Caroline Elkins, the pushy Mau Mau historian – would, one day in this life, need to tell us his life story. To set the record straight. To put the rumours to bed.
Perhaps Elkins had access to the Rhodes Library at Oxford and the sworn testimonies of Mau Mau persecutors that are allegedly held there.
Even so, and whatever the circumstances under which those testimonies were obtained, Kiereini needed to publicly tell his side of that story. Now, at the age of 85 years, he takes a long-range perspective on the whole colonial project and his place in it.
GLARING ERRORS
A Daunting Journey is, therefore, a story of (dis)closures. It is a search for closure that is bogged down by the consequences of disclosure. It is a story muted by fierce loyalties and (un)clear allegiances; a story told by a man who came of age in a time of upheavals and strict moral codes.
Kiereini's discomfort with the label "wealthy" is almost missionary, even though he proudly declares that in 1978 he bought a brand new Mercedes 450SLC sport with a dual exhaust system for Sh680,000. It was the era when his "generation developed odd ideas about status and money" and Kiereini gives us a glimpse into the kinds of investments that they made.
This book is beautifully written and is very easy to read.
To hold our attention – and take the edge off the monotony of a predictable opening chapter covering "the early years" in the usual sequence of family tree, childhood in colonial Kenya, herding goats, walking to primary school, making it to Kagumo and then Alliance — Kiereini provides a dramatic prologue.
"There are truths not yet ripe for revelation and I have no desire to attain the short-lived fame that accompanies the loose disclosure of scandal and gossip … Discretion … is strength, while bald truth is the path to dissension". He will not tell us everything he witnessed. It is not his place to do so.
Whenever he introduces dialogue, Kiereini adds another disclaimer: "I no longer remember but it went something like …" This rider reinforces his confession that when he eventually retired from the civil service in 1989, he "burned nearly everything" because he "wanted to make a clean break". Moreover, he has never kept a personal diary.
To make up for these gaps, Kiereini gives incisive accounts on the roots of many institutions, government policies such as Africanisation and detailed descriptions of his specific duties in every office he occupied.
Despite this detailed research, there are some errors in the rendering. For instance, Kiereini – who served as a PS in the Ministry of Defence – gives the date of Milton Obote's ouster by Idi Amin as 1972 and then goes on to argue that these events in neighbouring Uganda influenced the thinking of Kenya's Chief of Defence Staff, Major-General Ndolo, who was said to be behind the 1971 coup plot. This logic is sound but Amin's coup was not in 1972, it was staged on January 25, 1971.
Likewise, some of the captivating photographs in this book carry inaccurate captions. The most amusing error here is the picture of those who went to study administration in London in 1962. The caption says they were photographed outside London Law courts yet one can see Mitchell Cotts (now St. Ellis) House and the Nairobi High Court (what is now the Supreme Court) clearly in the background!
Kiereini is always at pains to differentiate between the ethos of public servants and that of politicians. His aversion to politicians is clear when he explains how his rise up the civil service was hampered by the unsavoury things that ex-detainees like Waira Kamau kept whispering to the president.
DEVIL IN THE DETAILS
Given the work he had done preparing missives from the Indian High Commission to sabotage the colonialist's war against Mau Mau, Kiereini feels he was wrongly labelled a traitor. He confesses to having taken the Mau Mau oath but when questioned over it he declared that as an "educated Christian the oath held no power over (him)".
There is no gossip or speculation over key events such as the emergence of Jaramogi's KPU, Mboya's assassination and JM's killing. But Kiereini does discuss some of the political outcomes of Mboya's killing.
In 1969, Kiereini was duped into taking an oath for Kikuyu unity in Gatundu. He explains the siege mentality that gripped some Kikuyus then and shows how Kenyatta intervened at the inception of GEMA by insisting that its leadership should come from businessmen, not politicians.
But when he owns up to the failure of the independence generation to deliver on the dream of national unity, Kiereini lumps the civil servants together with the politicians.
"(W)e knew what should be done, we knew where we wanted to go, but we never worked out the details, we never had a clear strategy, nor were the specifics ever pursued".
If there is a secret you once whispered to Kiereini, you can be sure it has not been exposed in this book. He has gone to great lengths to keep people's confidences. The story about a colleague in Machakos who was embarrassed by child support claims under the old Affiliation Act is more concerned with Kiereini's role as a DC with duties of a First Class Magistrate. But if you enjoy detective stories, there are enough clues here for you to work out the identity of that amorous civil servant!
For all his tight-lipped narration, there are some histories that Kiereini has chosen to tell in great detail – like the 1982 coup, which he terms "an immature fiasco". His disclosures – particularly his report of Major-General Peter Kariuki's conduct on the night of the coup – are nothing short of startling.
Kiereini gives many details. "In the battle for VoK, 70 Air Force rebels were killed, but there were no army casualties". And apparently, there were bombs dropped on the Muthaiga homes of Mwai Kibaki and Charles Njonjo. (Jameni, who will convince these two — for posterity's sake — to pen their memoirs; or record them as audio books?)
With some help from Ben Gethi – then the head of GSU, Kiereini made his way to Vigilance House at 4am from where the two of them spent close to 24 hours, without food or drink, coordinating responses to quell the coup. But in the week that followed, Gethi faced serious censure from Moi and was, in fact, arrested from Kiereini's office.
Kiereini's account of the Moi years is tortured by his determination to defend his role and to demonstrate the capriciousness of the regime without calling Moi names.
1PM NEWSBULLETIN
There are glaring contradictions in Kiereini's account of his take over as Head of the Civil Service from his boss, Geoffrey Kariithi. At some point, he says Moi released Kariithi graciously. But earlier on, Kiereini had described how Moi kept refusing Kariithi's resignation.
In any case, how could Kiereini, having agreed with Moi when the announcement of his elevation would be made, sit through lunch with Kariithi knowing full well that his boss was – at that very moment and without forewarning – the latest victim of the tyranny and humiliation of the 1pm VOK news bulletin in Moi's time?
Kiereini walked out of the Red Bull Restaurant with Kariithi in tow.
When people on the street started congratulating him, Kiereini actually pretended not to know what they were talking about! As someone once said, the road to power is paved with hypocrisy. And casualties.
Kiereini is very guarded about the triangular ties between himself, Moi and Njonjo. But he does explain the genesis of his close friendship with Moi and we can see why he feels compelled to justify the unjustifiable in Moi's regime.
Jeremiah Kiereini with the former AG Charles Njonjo. PHOTO | FILE
In one instance, Kiereini regrets the ironical entrance into Washington that they once made, with a huge entourage, aboard the Concorde. The Washington Post exposed them under a banner headline "Beggars Arrive in Concorde".
Kiereini insists that the problem with Moi's retinue was that it was made up of people who "did not have enough background or experience to contribute to the discussions".
He insists that taking 60 people on an international business trip is understandable if all 60 are capable of participating in the meetings. Really?
With palpable nostalgia and idealism, Kiereini reflects on many negative changes in Kenya, including rampant corruption in the civil service. But the treachery was present even in the 1960s when "some went for short courses in respected institutions like Harvard, and then called themselves alumni of the university".
This is an important book. It has boldly stepped in to challenge the dominant linear history of "traitors" and "freedom-fighters" that we have comforted ourselves with for so long now.
It was released last week by East African Educational Publishers and is available in leading book shops.
Lately, the inconsistent performance of our reformers has shown how false our so-called ideological divides are, how cunningly one can use the plight of history to castigate others in order to elevate oneself.
For as Kiereini says, "(p)erhaps a man is shaped more by chance and opportunity than by any other forces in his life".
Postscript: I was singularly struck by the humility of Attorney General Githu Muigai. He wrote a glowing foreword to the book even though Kiereini has categorically stated, "In my own opinion, (Charles) Njonjo … was by far the best Attorney General the country has ever had, and he had an excellent understanding of his duties." Wow.
Democracy is two Wolves and a Lamb voting on what to have for lunch. Liberty is a well-armed Lamb contesting the results.
Benjamin FranklinUAH forum is devoted to matters of interest to Ugandans. Individuals are responsible for whatever they post on this forum.To unsubscribe from this group, send email to: ugandans-at-heart+unsubscribe@googlegroups.com or Abbey Semuwemba at: abbeysemuwemba@gmail.com.
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