Dedan Kimathi's Memorial Statue

                                          James Willis Wang’ondu Nganga
                                          P.O. Box 536
                                          Njoro - 20107
                                          Kenya

                                          18th March 2007

H.E. Mwai Kibaki, CGH, MP
President of the Republic of Kenya, and
Commander of her Armed Forces,
State House - Nairobi
P.O. Box 40530
Nairobi - 00100 - GPO
Nairobi

Dear Sir

This is a letter of profound gratitude and appreciation to you and your Government following the inauguration of the Dedan Kimathi Memorial statue one month ago, on the aptly named Kimathi street.

The unveiling of the Dedan Kimathi Memorial statue clearly demonstrates the seriousness with which your Government holds the freedom struggle in this country, long consigned to oblivion by this country and it’s people. A lot of criticism has been levelled against you and Government over the past one month, over what is perceived as the high cost and inadequacy of the Memorial. These are standpoints that cannot be accorded any measure of seriousness, because Kenyans as a whole have shown no regard and no respect for their heritage and the freedom struggle over the last fifty years. The Chief Executive Officer of the lead local mobile phone network provider Safaricom, has just announced that the Safaricom subscriber base is due to hit the six million mark at the end of March 2007. If the six million had donated only 10 Kenya shillings to a cause such as the establishment of Trust Fund dealing with all aspects related to the freedom struggle in Kenya, then an initial amount of 60 million Kenya shillings (approximately US $ 850,000), would have been immediately raised. It therefore makes no sense to raise hue and cry over the Memorial’s approximate stated cost of US $ 57,000.

Of much greater importance though Sir, is the need to fast track and solidify a clearer and more accurate documentation of Kenyan history in general. We know and understand too little about ourselves and are doing even less towards remedying this serious anomaly. Your Government’s unveiling of the Dedan Kimathi Memorial statue has however encouraged me enough to write you this letter.

Our sister West African Republic of Ghana, has just marked the Golden Jubilee of her independence. Prior to this, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), World Service, ran a most interesting series and analysis on Ghana’s fifty years of independence, featuring a wide cross section of individuals and views, and defined by Kwame Nkrumah’s remarks of 6th March 1957 that “Ghana, your beloved country, is free forever”.

In quick succession, the BBC World Service will certainly carry numerous other similar features, as several other African countries approach the Golden Jubilees of their independence. At the rate at which socio-cultural deterioration continues to take place in this country, the Kenyan feature due for the year 2013, will clearly rank amongst the most colourless of all the African features, and we only have ourselves to blame for this.

On 1st June 1963, the date we attained internal self governance in Kenya, founding President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, stated that “This is the happiest day of my life”. Will the nation truly echo this on 1st June 2013, and who is to blame…….?

Mau Mau, the movement that Dedan Kimathi led, is in itself little understood, despite it’s distinguished prominence in Kenya’s history. Very few people for instance, know of the tactics employed by Mau Mau in the freedom struggle, and even fewer have bothered with this aspect of our history, despite the fact that Mau Mau was the key reason that a State of Emergency was declared on 20th October 1952, and one of the key reasons that Britain became ever more keen on speeding up and granting political independence to it’s colonies in Africa. For instance, Great Britain initially intended to grant independence to Kenya in 1973.

Why do we now have a grand statue of a great Kenyan on Nairobi’s Kimathi street, yet we have next to no understanding of who he was and what he stood for, and even less, of the movement he led……? Why are many Kenyans able to describe the effective “Cow Horn” military tactics employed by revered 19th century South African Zulu leader Shaka, yet we know nothing of the Mau Mau tactics that sent shock waves amongst the British, both here and abroad……? This is further complicated by the fact that several individuals belonging to Kimathi’s generation, have gone to their rest.

Why were Kenyans so easily duped into believing that Kimathi’s rival for leadership in Mau Mau, Gen. Stanley Mathenge, was alive and well in neighbouring Ethiopia, only for the hoax to be played out in very shameful, humiliating and depressing circumstances in the year 2003? Do we really care for the truth? Do we really care for our heritage? Do we really care for posterity? Do we really care for anything?

It is in this respect Sir, that I humbly suggest that your Government constitute a national committee on this country’s history, to address many of these serious flaws and misgivings in our country’s short history. I suggest that this be done by way of a legal notice in the Kenya Gazette. I further suggest that the said national committee on Kenya’s history be given a five year mandate and far reaching powers, to gather, collate and document any and all information related to this country’s past, in bid to define ourselves and our heritage better, and in a bid to build Kenya into a socio-cultural destination of choice, for both ourselves and the outside world. This should be a national undertaking aimed at addressing issues in and amongst all 42 communities in this country.

Kenyans from all walks of life, of all ages and from all corners of this country, should be allowed to submit what can be regarded as “secrets” and/or “long withheld information” to this committee, “or forever hold our peace”. Time is running out, and we must work very hard to make up for large amounts of lost time and opportunities, and bequeath a tangible heritage to our descendants.

This would be an expensive undertaking, whose members must be challenged with the added task of attracting partnerships, support, technical expertise and funding, in a joint venture to involve the Kenya Government, and outside partners, such as the BBC World Service. Depending on the dedication, discipline, commitment and how well the process is managed, the venture can partly culminate in the production of a full feature comprehensive documentary on Kenya’s freedom struggle in it’s entirety, similar to the award winning documentary on global warming, “An Inconvenient Truth”, which had the backing of no less than former US Vice President Al Gore, who describes himself as “I used to be the next president of the United States”, in the globally acclaimed award winning documentary. This would have an extremely favourable image on Kenya’s image both here and abroad.

In this respect, I further humbly suggest that the proposed committee be chaired by Ramogi Achieng Oneko, the last remaining surviving member of the famous pre-independence sextet imprisoned by the Colonial Government at the infamous Kapenguria trial.

Despite his advanced age, Ramogi Achieng Oneko continues to be active in public life, a profound statement of the goodwill he harbours for this country and it’s future. He stands out prominently on national days and was even present at the inauguration of Dedan Kimathi’s Memorial monument on 18th February 2007, where he delighted the gathering with events of yesteryear. He has a wealth of experience in a multiplicity of fields including diplomacy and administration, and his role in chairing such a high profile committee would accord it the desired credibility, desired goodwill, desired impetus and desired allure to outside partners and funding. I am certain that Ramogi Achieng Oneko would be more than willing to once again serve this country and it’s people, in such a distinguished and important role. I am able to write you this letter Sir for instance, because of the crucial role played by the likes of Ramogi Achieng Oneko in this country’s history.

The committee must also be partly comprised of at least eight highly regarded national individuals, one each from Kenya’s eight provinces. It would be preferable if politicians were allowed no role at all in the proposed committee, Sir. In their place Sir, should be numerous local private sector companies/representatives, who continue to play a very useful high profile role in community affairs nationwide.

Election year or no election year Sir, the truth of this country’s history must be told and documented in an accurate and comprehensive way, and should not be allowed continued existence in it’s current shallow, unhelpful and distasteful form. Kenya’s current state of socio-cultural affairs are a heinous shame, crime and disservice to itself, and humanity in general.

Why should we take pride in quoting medieval history from other parts of the world, when we cannot sensibly reconstruct and document our history, for periods as recent as fifty years ago? Why should we take tremendous pride in quoting from the Holy Bible, and yet fail miserably in emulating those that made it possible for us to have the Holy Bible and it’s rich teachings in the first place?

These are serious soul searching questions that we must ask ourselves Sir, as we chart out this country’s destiny and it’s future. When the BBC does the Golden Jubilee independence feature on Kenya in 2013, let it proudly stand out.

Sir, I thank you once again for the important step that you and your Government have taken in re-defining our past and future. There is no future, if we do not recognise the past.

Yours faithfully,

James Willis Wang’ondu Nganga