Hooked to brew that killed his friends

Mugs of his favourite brew turned lethal on five of his friends, but he is not about to retire from drinking dens.

Mr Nahashon Mwasi had passed by his favourite joint on Friday morning to quench his thirst, as usual, before he set off for work.

Hours later, he received reports that five of his friends had died from consuming the same drink, chang’aa. But he termed the incident as “bahati mbaya”, bad luck.

“The drink is my life. I cannot sleep without a glass or two,” Mr Mwasi told the Nation on Sunday at the eatery where his friend, Samuel, who died after drinking the brew, used to work.

Staggered

However following the tragedy, he decided to switch to another drink.

“I will go back to drinking busaa, although it is more expensive, (than chang’aa),” he said.

A mug of chang’aa is said to cost as little as Sh10 compared to busaa, which costs Sh20.

Ironically, on Sunday morning Mr Mwasi, a father of one, did not fail to pass by a “watering hole” before he staggered to console the families who had lost their loved ones in Friday’s tragedy.

Nine people are said to have died although residents put the number at 18. Another dozen went blind.

To Mr Mwasi, the brew is not only a daily companion but a tranquilliser.

“I cannot sleep without drinking. I will stay awake all night and feel stressed,” he said. “I have been drinking chang’aa for over 21 years.”

His wife’s plea that he stop drinking has been ignored.

When the Nation on Sunday visited the drinking den where the victims were said to have consumed the illicit brew, residents discussed Friday’s happenings in hushed tones.

Mr Ahmed Chege, 29, lost his eldest brother to the lethal drink.

The 49-year-old Robert Samuel Maluki, commonly known as “Sammy”, used to run an eatery in Shauri Moyo. Unfortunately, Sammy had become a slave to the drink.

“He would open the hotel, find his way to the den at lunchtime and later in the evening,” Mr Chege said during his brother’s burial arrangements.

According to residents who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, the owner of the drinking den dubbed “Nineteen”, where the victims were said to have been served the lethal brew, had fled with his family to Tanzania. He was only identified as “Kibaden”.

Naivasha MP John Mututho dismissed claims that the Shauri Moyo victims had been killed by chang’aa.

“Industrial chemicals from molasses plants are being diluted and sold to unsuspecting poor Kenyans in the name of chang’aa,” said Mr Mututho, who called the Nation to comment on the Friday incident.

The legislator, who is also the author of the Alcoholic Drinks Bill, faulted companies who sold industrial chemicals meant for the manufacture of products like detergents to chang’aa brewers.

“Industrial chemicals have been repacked, flavoured, and branded and later sold as alcoholic beverages,” said Mr Mututho.

“Many wines and spirits in the Kenyan market have been rejected in other countries yet our people are consuming them.”

The MP was optimistic that the proposed law would regulate alcohol consumption. Some of the chemicals he said were found in the Shauri Moyo drink were methanol, propanol, and ethanol.

Methanol is highly toxic in humans. If ingested, as little as 10 ml can cause permanent blindness by destroying the optic nerve and 30 ml is potentially fatal.

Ethanol has widespread use as a solvent in scents, flavourings, colourings, and medicines. It is the principal psychoactive constituent in alcoholic beverages, although its content varies in different drinks.