Martha Karua On Mungiki

NSIS.Admits Mungiki Has Infiltrated Government

Mungiki gang members have established themselves in every sector of the Kenyan government, according to the National Security Intelligence Service.

The spy agency made the disclosure while responding to questions from the Parliamentary committee on National Security and Administration.The committee, which sought to establish the number of people killed by organised criminal gangs in Nyeri East and Kirinyaga West districts between April and May, tabled a report of its findings in Parliament on Thursday.

The NSIS told the team that media coverage and propaganda were partly to blame for challenges the government faced in its war against the group and other criminal gangs.

Martha Karua On Mungiki

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Posted on August 7, 2009 at 14:58 in Tags | RSS feed | Respond | Trackback URL

Tags: martha karua, Mungiki, NSIS

15 Comments to “Martha Karua On Mungiki”

Godfrey
August 20, 2009 at 03:36

Who or what is Mungiki? All the talk seems to be focused on the figting, war, elimination, eradication, etc. But how can you eradicate something that you do not know? Secondly, Mungiki is a product of our society and force is not the solution. As long as there is massive unemployment, poverty, inequality, impunity, unfairness and marginalization, groups like Mungiki will continue to thrive.

Of course, there are those who will argue that the Kikuyu are not the only ones affected by a broken political and economic system. But, if you examine other ethnic groups in Kenya, you will find that groups like Mungiki do exist. The only difference is that these other groups tend to be localized and disorganized unlike Mungiki which is much bigger and national in scope.

Call me a Mungiki sympathiser if you want but bullets and jails will not win this war.
hofnerman
August 20, 2009 at 17:13

Everyone seems to providently forget Mungiki until they start killing again. Disbanding militia groups was central to Kofi Anann’s plans to end impunity . As long as secret groups remain organized in the country including some like Mungiki that have infiltrate all areas of government (including the security agencies) then i guess we can all wait for the violence
Godfrey
August 21, 2009 at 01:51

There are militias all over the country: Mungiki, Chinkororo, Kaya Bamba, Cattle rustling gangs across Pokot, Turkana, Samburu and Borana areas, Somali clan militias, Sungu Sungu, etc, etc. None of these groups are under the control of any politician and disbanding them will be very difficult unless you address the specific circumstances that led to their creation. Sometimes I wonder whether its the politicians who use these groups or whether it is the groups using the politicians!
Bongisani Mhlaba
October 27, 2009 at 02:29

Who created the mungiki? What is the agenda of the mungiki? What ar the goverment plans to fight the spreading of the mungiki?
Godfrey
October 29, 2009 at 01:39

Here’s a very accurate description of Mungiki’s formation, goals and evolution to the present.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=1144027275&cid=16&
Mwangi wa Simon
October 29, 2009 at 16:26

Godfrey :
Here’s a very accurate description of Mungiki’s formation, goals and evolution to the present.
http://www.standardmedia.co.ke/InsidePage.php?id=1144027275&cid=16&

I am always amazed at how someone like Chahcha Mwita(former odm candidate and standard editor from Kuria) can claim to know Mungiki better than other people including kikuyus.To claim that Mungiki was formed to overthrow the old guard Kikuyu politicians is a lie.

1.Mungiki was formed to defend kikuyus in Rift Valley against by the Moi government.
2.Kikuyu politicians took notice of it and financed its activities expanding its mandate from a protection force to a tool that could be used to overthrow the Moi government.(It was after Moi got word of this that the tribal clashes died down in 1992)Moi saw the potential and negotiated a way out.

3.Mungiki has always been a mass movement for all kikuyus not just poor Kikuyus.
4.Maina njenga has never been in control of all elements of Mungiki.(Mungiki has its owners)
5.Mungiki like any other underground movement with secret structures will not die because maina njenga has left .
Mungiki will soon be under new management and whats worse is kenyans now wont even know who the new leaders are
Godfrey
October 30, 2009 at 01:55

All in all, the Standard article is a fair summary of Mungiki’s evolution to the present. Look at this quote:

Had Mungiki kept politicians at bay and focused on the goal, there would have been no need for visa bans from the US today.

Mungiki would have done the job for us for indeed, Mungiki was originally neither a sect nor a gang of extortionists and killers. It was a liberation movement against the wealthy ruling class — the same ones the US is trying to help us deal with.

Now, just like the article says, politicians have rendered Mungiki impotent and literally killed the organization. Here’s the latest news:
Mungiki sect disbanded, leaders claim
http://www.capitalfm.co.ke/news/Kenyanews/Mungiki-sect-disbanded,-leaders-claim.html
joe
October 30, 2009 at 13:30

The standard article doesnt make any sense at all. Almost everyone-all professions-including some politicians are part Mungiki.You can’t separate the two.Mungiki is much bigger than Maina Njenga or matatu collections.Mungiki is an organization whose ‘real’ leaders are still not known.It may have began with Njenga but if anything it was the politicians who made it potent as opposed to Chacha’s claims that politicians made it impotent.

Kenyans always tell stories the way they want them to work out not the way they are.If Maina njenga was so powerful and Mungiki has been disbanded why not release the documents he has put the whole matter to rest. its simple there are no documents only cheap news grabbing antics.

What we are seeing is some Mungiki’s inspired to join odm but can not deliver its (membership) because they no longer control them.If Maina and his 5 million Mungiki members supported Raila in the referendum in 2005.Why was the vote in Central almost 99% banana. It is because Maina Njenga does not have the power(He is the paper leader of Mungiki). Ask Ester Passaris when she run for Embakasi seat, a Mungiki stronghold with the backing of so called Mungiki Leaders Gitau Njunguna and Maina Njenga.She was defeated …Period.That in itself for anyone who has eyes should say enough. Maina Njenga has no capacity to deliver anyone to ODM or any other party
Muigwithania 2.0
October 30, 2009 at 13:43

Nairobi Star — Maina Njenga yesterday warned that he may not be in full control of the sect as a new leader might emerge to replace him.Njenga said his five-year incarceration may have weakened his authority and there was no guarantee that his members would follow his lead by renouncing violence.
Njenga’s warning came as several leaders of mainstream churches urged caution in admitting sect members into their congregations.The leaders said some of the sect members were likely to join various churches with ulterior motives.
Godfrey
October 31, 2009 at 09:14

Politicians turned Mungiki into a political force by supplying money, vehicles and other goods. However, in the process, they made Mungiki to forget its original goals of liberating the poor from social and economic oppression. That marked the downfall of Mungiki. It was very easy for the ruling elite to corrupt Mungiki leaders with big cars, millions in cash, big houses, vast land and access to innumerable wives and concubines. Kenya’s rulers knew exactly what they were doing and now, the likes of Maina Njenga and Ndura Waruinge with their very visible wealth no longer command the following they had in the past.

The factors that gave rise to Mungiki (poverty, marginalization, social oppression and violence) still exist in Kenya. It is just a matter of time before another group emerges.
Muigwithania 2.0
October 31, 2009 at 11:04

Mungiki’s original goal was to protect Kikuyu’s in the Rift Valley against Kalenjin attacks.Their goal has never been to liberate the poor from social and economic oppression.After 1992 their focus changed to bringing about Kikuyu unity around the country hence the expansion to other regions.That said their goals have been dynamic changing to suit the times.Some of them now want a social revolution.

The problem with this new goal is Kikuyu culture and society is so intertwined that using the poor to fight the rich is not possible. Many super rich Kikuyu families have relatives who are poor or middle class.In fact wealth in Central Kenya is a single family issue.You make your money and live in harmony with your poor uncle next door.

Majority of the rich have risen to riches through hard work not patronage .Poor Kikuyus make up less that 30% of the kikuyu population.Majority of Kikuyus are middle class Kenyans .That is why when the crackdown on poor Mungiki membership began, Central Kenya was silent because many could not relate to Mungikis new agenda of economic revolution and economic ‘socialism’ for all kikuyus.Ours is a society of free enterprise and capitalism.Equality ,socialism or social revolutions that aim to strip any kind of wealth are doomed to fail.

The Maina Njengas and Gitau Njugunas of our world have simply lost the plot and are headed to political oblivion. That said something should be done to uplift the 30% kikuyus who might be living in poverty and the millions of non kikuyus living in poverty.Even though when ever our leadership tries to uplift people from poverty(as was the case between 2003-2007) others distablize the government and the nation.The 7% growth rate of that period would have uplifted many poor Kenyans by now .It was only derailed by tribalist working for outside powers. Working against a government that was doing its best to help all Kenyans

Social revolutions within the Kikuyu community were never economic in nature.Generational change was never intended to redistribute wealth.That is why generational change was a peaceful affair.In fact many of the younger Kikuyu politicians currently in parliament are from ordinary Kikuyu families(most kikuyu mps in parliament today are under 50 yrs of age).And those of an older generation where also from ordinary families that had no power in their time(Karume and Kenyatta for instance had no patronage before their rise.They were ordinary kikuyus outside the circle of ruling Kikuyu chieftains of the time).Change will come but it will only happen as it should.The kikuyu way does not involve throwing out older leaders its a phrased process of mixing and edging out the older generation in a dignified and constructive manner .

There will be no revolution televised in Central Kenya.Those who think they can push for a revolution will only have themselves to blame for their fate
Godfrey
November 2, 2009 at 03:16

Godfrey :
The factors that gave rise to Mungiki (poverty, marginalization, social oppression and violence) still exist in Kenya. It is just a matter of time before another group emerges.

Just as predicted, similar groups are emerging across the country. In Kisumu, there is a youth group that is not only demanding money from matatus, but they also want private car owners to pay for using the roads! See story on this link:
http://blog.jaluo.com/?p=2764
Simo
November 2, 2009 at 12:00
Simo
November 2, 2009 at 12:26

Muigwithania your analysis was spot on .I Just saw the latest Maina Njenga interview on K24 its exactly as you said Maina Njenga cant not deliver Mungiki.The report in the standard you were right doesnt make sense.I hope Mungiki people can be saved and join the church but I hope they dont follow Maina Njenga.

Maina should follow Christ in peace. Take time to grow spiritually keep away from politics.He cant wezana with the real mungiki owners
Wanja
November 23, 2009 at 13:52

i read the chronology of comments and i am just like wow spot on