Release ‘Inua Jamii’ cash, plead elderly Mau Mau fighters

Former Mau Mau freedom fighters living in Nyandarua have urged the government to release the Inua Jamii monthly stipend to enable elderly people to enjoy Christmas.

 They said the last time old people received the Sh2,000-per-month stipend was in July this year.

 Speaking in Ngorika Village of Nyandarua County when they visited their 100-year-old colleague, Njura wa Muronyo alias General Kiambati (right), they said the money is normally a relief to the elderly, especially when seeking medical help. 

“The delay has forced many of us to turn to our family members for help when we need money for hospital visits,” said Ihoya Kagwe, alias Brigadier John Kiboko.

 They revived calls for the government to find, retrieve and hand over the body of Mau Mau hero Dedan Kimathi for a proper burial. The hero is believed to have been hanged and buried at Kamiti Prison in mid last century after he was captured by colonial forces at the height of the freedom struggle.

 “We were elated when (former President) Uhuru Kenyatta said that when he retires he would like to go home together with his father (Jomo Kenyatta; interred elsewhere). Kimathi’s remains  should also be found and handed over to his widow, Mukami, so that he can be buried at home without handcuffs and chains,” said Kiboko, 92.

 Jomo Kenyatta died in 1978 and was interred at the National Assembly ground in Nairobi.

 They said Nyandarua had 12 Mau Mau generals initially, but only two are still alive — Kiambati and Muraya Mbuthia. They urged the county government to build a mausoleum in honour of the deceased generals.

  They also pleaded for assistance from the national and county governments to fulfill one promise they made to God when they were fighting in Aberdare and Mt Kenya forests.  “We promised God that if he helped us win the war, we would erect places of worship in his honour. We are yet to fulfill that,” said Captain Juma Macharia, adding that these shrines would be build in selected places in Mt Kenya region.

 They expressed a wish to meet “Mtoto wa Mau Mau” Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, saying they had a lot of information to share with him and his team.

 The ex-freedom fighters extolled the country’s third president, Mwai Kabaki, for removing a section of the law that classified Mau Mau as an outlawed group. “During his time, we used to be invited for national celebrations. This is no longer the case,” lamented Captain Juma.