Nyakwar Ja'Oko, Akuch Maradadi

it is one of those things that kenyans used only to see happening in other countries especially somalia, the DRC and sudan. little did we know that our turn was just around the corner. the trigger of all this was just one of those normal democratic processes espoused by you know who.
it was on a sunday morning whem i was on my way going for my favourite paper. the moment i stepped out of the gate, i realised that all was not normal. people were in small groups busy talking in low tones. i could not decipher what they were saying, i was with my daughter who was just as surprised as i was. the situation looked calm but my senses were saying that something was boiling underneath. i went back to my house and began watching a movie. in the process one of my neighbors came by and we started chatting. by 1 oclock things had started getting out of hand and i had to leave. my wife stayed behind as she was not one of the communities being attacked. i came from a rival community and that is why i had to leave. i rang one of my friends and they came for me. we met at a jucntion and saw what was happening. the thugs had barricaded the roads. people had started streaming into police station and the prison area around.

2b continued...

i have been having some very boring Saturdays so my friend and i decided to have some fun. the fun involved climbing Mt Longonot. i have never had an experience in climbing mountains and this was my first. the journey was to start very early in the morning but i was late. this meant that i had to skip breakfast something i came to regret later.
my friend picked me up after i had bought some snacks (that included some gum) that i was to eat before starting the ascend. after we paid at the gate, we started off. the first 2 or so kilometers were not bad. the steepest section was just before reaching the crater edge. at some points i had to go on all fours. reaching the edge was not enough as we had to go around. as we started off, it reached a point where i could not go any further. i was dead hungry! i felt as though my stomach had steam boilers. what kept me going was the gum that i was chewing. the sugar gave me energy! the water i had carried was no good as it only aggravated my hunger. along the crater edge was a menacing mountain section that happened to be the highest peak. what was worrying and frightening is that we had to climb it. by this time i could barely move my limbs. some girls who had passed me along the way were almost reaching the peak, i had to do something, i mean how could ladies beat me! that is ridiculous. this self assessment gave me some momentum. i started moving. sometimes i had to go down in all fours. twigs and branches came in handy as i would use them to haul myself along. i bumped into a baby snake that was probably wondering what is wrong with this human. i let it pass as i catch some vital gulps of fresh air. i thought that i would find people waiting at the highest . i was all alone! on throwing my eyes ahead, i saw some had already gone, for about 2 kilometers. i sat down for less than three minutes, i was up the next minute hurtling down the slopes at terrific speed. i had suddenly gained some energy that i could not explain probably from the gum, may be. along the way around the crater, i started passing some people who had passed me. this gave me more strength as i murmured to myself that 'even on an empty stomach you can still do it'. at one point i was between the leading pack and the last batch of people. i took time to take some pictures from my phone and a digital camera i was carrying. the unfortunate thing is that the camera was not working properly. my phone camera was better. there was nobody around me so i took a photo of myself and parts of the crater.
around the mountain were some very beautiful priceless breathtaking scenes that i hope to share. the next few kilometers to the starting point was hell because i was out of the chewing gum; my source of energy. but i had to keep on moving. i reached the starting point on the edge of the crater only to see the leading pack had already finished descending and i heard my knees buckle at the thought of descending. but i had to do it anyway. on my way down i met two ladies who were also descending, one was lamenting about the knees and i said to myself 'only if she knew what i was going through'.
i realized that going down was more hell that going up. gravitational pull was stronger. the knees were now refusing to go. i had to stop several times to massage them into action! my legs did not want to bend; imagine walking along the slopes at right angles. i will tell you its more than hell! by the time i finished the slope, i was like a baby learning how to take the first steps. my knees had locked and movement was labored.
however, i managed to reach the gate canteen and my first order was pineapple juice. the juice went down faster than i was sucking it through the straw. then the worst part came! i developed muscle pull! a muscle along my right leg could not allow it to stretch. i have never known such pain and discomfort. i tried to eat some biscuits but the stomach was as if it had crumbled. it was terrible down there. i had to wait for more that ten minutes before taking any food.
getting back home was no problem as i used a vehicle. however, the pain in my legs and knees is still unbearable. as i write this, i cant bend them.

you might think that after over 40 years of independence Kenyans would be free from land clashes and diseases such as cholera. But this is becoming an illusion, a sort of mirage that Kenyans are chasing every other day. Mt Elgon is a mountain that is being shared by Kenya and Uganda. the other side is relatively peaceful. Kenyans are flooding there as refugees. the administration is adamant and lethargic in responding to the needs of its subjects. the area has no single km. of tarmac road. the local MP has gone to sleep. you rarely find him comment on the going ons in his constituency. over 25000 have been displaced and several have lost their lives and will continue to do so. justice Kenya style!

Not far away from Mt Elgon is lowland called West Pokot. the area is inhabited with pastoralists. what is interesting is that people are dying from cholera. 9 have so far succumbed. local hospitals,or shall i call them dispensaries, do not have the capacity to test what strain of cholera is affecting the locals. samples have to travel by road to Nairobi, over 400 km away to be determined. meanwhile people die! Oh, disease when art thou go away?