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The elders who will conduct the cleansing ritual at the Mukuruwe wa Nyagathanga shrine will spend their night there ahead of the ceremony morning.

Kikuyu Council of Elders Secretary General Peter Munga said the rituals will be performed by selected cultural priests who have advanced knowledge of traditional practices.

Munga said by spending the night at the shrine, the priests will have ample time to conduct prayers to sanctify the shrine which they claim was made unholy during the coronation of the National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi.

Munga said the cleansing ceremony will be followed by an open prayer forum at Mumbi grounds near Murang’a town.

“We opted to have the prayers held in a different venue so that we can have enough space to accommodate more people while observing social distance as required by the ministry of health” he said.

Munga also said the cleansing ceremony on shall be done jointy by the Kikuyu Council of Elders and Kiama Kia Ma saying this is one way of showing their unity as elders.

He said the two factions had already made a resolution to bury the hatchet and speak in one voice.

“We shall hold this event together in a show of unity amongst us and set aside the differences which have been there” he said.

Elders from various counties have been invited and are expected to attend the ceremony.

Munga said they deemed it necessary to cleanse the shrine as it was inappropriate to have Muturi coronated there.

“This is a highly regarded shrine
and I was very wrong to have someone dash in and have such a ceremony done for him” he remarked.

“We were aggrieved as elders because there were no consultations done over the matter” he added.

Michael Mugo the vice chair Kiama Kia Ma said the elders will also put in measures to ensure the shrine is more secure.

“We have to ensure that all the protocols shall be observed before anyone is allowed to come in here for any ritual” said Mugo.

He said though the shrine is under the custody of the national museum and the county government the elders will take charge of the activities happening here.