Mbunge La Mwananchi under threat from Government

Comrades,

In solidarity with Mbunge, it is clear that the police are trying to break Mbunge. We should not give them an opportunity to.

Whereas I agree with Onyango Oloo and Muthoni Wanyeki, - who have elsewhere elaborately given many good lessons and raised concerns on the matter of organising; of exercising caution; of diligence and keeping their cool in the face of bare aggression from the state; of avoiding singular pseudo-heroism stunts; I am afraid the charges against Gacheke and 22 others [arrested in Kiamaiko at a tea kiosk, held and later charged with belonging to an illegal sect -mungiki] is a continuation of the "arrest and kill all young (and more often Kikuyu) persons and bury them at night" scenario so practiced since the octogenarian then Minister for Internal Security, one John Michuki declared that we will be hearing "burials here and burials there".

It has nothing to do with strategy of Mbunge la Mwananchi (since taking tea - in a group or otherwise-has never been a criminal activity)I think we should more focus on the grand idea of the government, of the NSIS and all: to break Mbunge.

We should, on recognising the unique place of Mbunge in the organisation of the civil society, seek to strengthen it, to create opportunities that enable Mbunge members to do their work in the best way, to equip them with skills, not to tame them, but to help them organise and organise effectively.There are very many hard lessons there (in Mbunge) and alot of anger and alot of dissatisfaction, and so many hungers.

If there is anything a person of conscience can lose very very fast in this country, it is their temper. And it is hard to cry alone in the bedroom - for those who have such. We are lax at organising, and at collectivising our voice, and at bringing ourselves to think together.

I have attended several meetings called by the civil society, some of them planning meetings, but there are two distinct voices there:

1. Some people feel the civil society likes and thrives on meetings and meetings, that in these meetings people theorise and never act.
2. Some people feel that meetings are important to consolidate ideas, get buy in, and mobilise the people and the space.

Both voices are right, but the trick is in balancing the two, not in demonising either (as has been the case usually) and NOT in having one and disregarding the other.

xxxxx

Some lesson from Nigeria:

During the chaos in Nigeria as captured in Wole Soyinka's You Must Set off at Dawn under the chapter "Uncivil Wars: The Third Force and Mid -West Incursion" there was alot of political machinations ala present day Kenya. On January 16th 1966, Wole Soyinka was so annoyed at the sham elections and with the fact of Ladoke Akintola's of NNDP and NCNC's "un-grand"coalition to take over government in the huge Western Africa Country, that he, SINGLE-HANDEDLY, raided the national radio and exchanged the tape containing his own taped speech with that of the "president's acceptance speech". His vehement speech against what he saw as "political thuggery" was broadcast on national radio! And by the time it was being noticed and he was being sought for, he was headed for the nearest border.

xxxxxx

But was he working alone ? NO! He was working with insiders and outsiders, most of them blinds (the guy who took him to the radio station -and instructed at gunpoint to take off after 30 mins if Soyinka did not return - only knew what Soyinka was doing when he heard the national broadcast!) But the movement knew, everybody knew what they HAD to know, not everything; and it consisted of all and sundry, from border guards to taxi drivers to orderlies in offices to operators of machines to high ranking executives...

And this is the lesson we must learn: That people have various uses, capacities and personalities. Let the movement for a free and democratically governed Kenya use them, but let us never seek homogeneity! We can never be the same, yet we must organise and be organised.

The take over of our social movements, of the space for action by politicians through plagiarism (remember 'bado mapambano') infiltration, use of co-option, use of divisive politics and the use of terror MUST be resisted.

WE MUST BE ALIVE TO FIGHT TOMORROW, BUT IF WE DIE, WE MUST DIE FIGHTING A GOOD FIGHT