By MACHARIA GAITHO
Posted Monday, April 2 2012 at 19:03
Posted Monday, April 2 2012 at 19:03
Navigating the new maze down Forest Road in Nairobi the other day, I saw a new signpost, Sikh Union.
Sikh Union? That was the old name of the Simba Union club dropped when President Moi decreed a ban on all tribal associations in the early years of his reign some three decades ago.
That the Sikhs want to reclaim their old identity might also see other sporting and cultural clubs in the same neighbourhood revert to their ‘real’ names.
Premier Club will dust-off and re-plant the Patel Club signboard. Ditto Nairobi Institute for Goan Institute and cricket Mecca, Nairobi Gymkhana for Hindu Gymkhana.
That small triangle in Nairobi of South-Asian sporting, cultural and religious facilities was one of the unintended casualties of President Moi’s ban on ‘tribal’ associations under the guise of cementing national unity.
Mr Moi’s main target was Gema, the Gikuyu, Embu and Meru Association led by wealthy power-barons who in the last days of the Kenyatta regime had usurped many of the instruments of State power for themselves.
To cement his hold on power after President Kenyatta’s death, Moi had to ‘kill’ Gema, and alongside that monster were many casualties in harmless sporting, cultural and religious associations.
Out went Luo Union Football Club that changed its name to Re-Union before disappearing into obscurity; and Abaluhya Football Club that changed its name to All-Footballers Cooperative, retaining the AFC initials.
Gor Mahia football club survived after President Moi decided to appease the Luo community, but for a short-time, it had to go by the name Gulf Olympic Rangers (GOR).
Anyway, President Moi purported to ban tribal associations, but in reality entrenched tribalism in every facet of national life as he perfected the divide-and-rule policies learnt at the feet of colonial tutors.
Mr Moi was also happy to finance and promote ethnic associations that did his bidding, as with that mouthful calling itself Kamatusa, purporting to represent the Kalenjin, Masai, Turkana and Samburu communities of the Rift Valley.
The Kamatusa grouping was cobbled together by the then President in the 1990s purportedly to drive peace talks with the Gema communities. But the truth is that Moi was seeking to unite the Kamatusa and Gema communities against the Luo.
The rationale provided at the time was that the Kikuyu and the Kalenjin — the main forces behind each bloc — were entrepreneurial property owners with common interests to protect against a community demonised at one meeting at Nakuru State House as radical communists out to cause mayhem and grab the wealth amassed through the sweat of others.
It seems nothing has changed. Recently we saw a Gema meeting discussing how to hold on to political power.
Now we expect today a Kamatusa meeting supposed to endorse Mr William Ruto as political supremo for the grouping.
Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto are allies brought together by their common tribulations over the post-election violence and antipathy for Raila Odinga.
I will not be surprised in coming days to see a gathering of the Luo Union of East Africa and the Luo Council of Elders coming round to rally support for Mr Odinga.
Then the Abaluhya Union will be exhumed to show support for Musalia Mudavadi; while the New Akamba Union will similarly be revived to support whoever wins the contest between Mr Kalonzo Musyoka and Charity Ngilu.
There is a common thread uniting all these anachronistic ethnic groupings. First, they are led by self-appointed self-seekers. Some politicians past their sell-by dates and retired clergymen in need of sustenance will always be trotted out to lend credence to the movements.
Ultimately they are organised and financed to do the political bidding of wealthy patrons with beady eyes on the capture or retention of political power and the attendant goodies.
I’d much rather play hockey and try out the curries at Sikh Union than traffic with Gema and other ethno-political associations.
At least such clubs exist to genuinely serve the cultural, social, religious and sporting pursuits of their communities.
mgaitho@ke.nationmedia.com
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