Bishop who took on a brutal regime over Rift Valley killings

• Fearless Catholic Archbishop Ndingi Mwana a’Nzeki tells his story with the first instalment of his new biography, ‘A Voice Unstilled: Archbishop Ndingi Mwana a’Nzeki’.

Sensing that the clashes were not about to abate, Ndingi gathered his priests for a meeting.

In the charged meeting, statistics on the death and suffering of the people of Rift Valley were put on the table.

On the Feast of Saint Joseph on March 19, 1992, the priests and the bishop, once again released a statement expressing concern at the killings and destruction of property and just fell short of blaming the government for the violence.

“Our analysis leads us to conclude that there is reluctance among our political leaders to contain the situation and this reluctance depicts a certain lack of confidence in those empowered to guide and protect us.”

The government was sending no help to the many victims strewn all over church compounds in the area.

To make matters worse, no government officials visited the area. Ndingi felt that matters were reaching intolerable levels and decided to take on the government personally, once again. He released a statement, this time written and signed by himself as the Bishop of the Diocese of Nakuru, squarely blaming the government for the clashes:

How is it that, after so many assurances by the president that people can live anywhere and own property anywhere people continue to get displaced?

As recently as 13th February, 1992, the president had assured people that anyone burning houses would be punished but houses continue to burn in Eldoret today and any policeman on duty in these clash torn areas who tries to defend the innocent and shoots or kills an attacker is transferred.

How is it that nobody has been prosecuted for burning houses or shooting people with arrows? Our conclusion is that the government of Kenya – Kanu government is behind the clashes.

Those killed

This was followed by a documentation of all those killed and the places where the atrocities were committed.

The government did not do much in the way of exonerating itself.

Around that time, the clamour for multiparty democracy had reached fever-pitch with the main opposition party, Forum for the Restoration of Democracy (Ford) presenting Kanu with its toughest challenge yet. The Kanu diehards continued threatening those who were seen to oppose Kanu or embrace the opposition.

“Those who do not sing the Kanu song,” a Kanu politician proclaimed in public on February 27, 1992, “will be chased away.”

By this time, Cardinal Otunga was getting increasingly wary of the situation. The government never really worried about him as the politicians knew him to be an extremely guarded clergyman who eschewed controversy.