‘I was to return from Mali the day coup took place’

He looked tired and weary; indeed, the past week has been one of his worst.

Dr Bonface Kaberia makes frequent trips abroad, overseeing the operations of Winrock International. His latest trip took him to Bamako, Mali.

Having been to Mali several times, he was optimistic that just as it was during his other previous trips, he would quickly finish his duties and return.

“I travelled to Bamako on Saturday. All went well but on the day I was to leave, hell broke loose; there was a coup.”

Dr Kaberia says he had not left his hotel when the unfortunate event occurred. “I had to think fast and ensure my safety,” he says.

At the time, there was gunfire all over. (READ: Mali coup leader pledges safe release of Kenyans)

The coup leaders had ordered all borders closed after taking over key buildings in Bamako and ousting President Amadou Toumani Toure in an event that sparked international condemnation.

As time went by, he learnt that a number of Kenyans, including Foreign minister Moses Wetangula, was also unable to leave his hotel as a result of the coup. His best bet was to find his way there join his compatriots.

“Getting to Laico Hotel was a bit difficult. The army refused me entry but the Ministry of Foreign Affairs helped me to get in. I’m so indebted to the staff,” he said.

“We stayed with at least 26 other Kenyans with the hope that we would be evacuated.”

He says the situation there was worsening, with many households and hotels running out of essentials, yet no one dared to go out.

Food reserves

“Many people stayed indoors and some of the hotels were saying they only had food reserves for a week,” he said.

“We still kept calm and remained optimistic that everything would be fine.”

Back in Kenya, frantic efforts were being made to evacuate them. The government even chartered a flight from an airline company in Nigeria.

The airline however declined to fly out saying they had been informed by the control tower in Mali that the airspace was not safe.

A ray of hope for Dr Kaberia came when Mr Wetangula declined to take up a seat on a UN chartered flight, after he insisted that he would not be leaving other Kenyans behind.

The minister said on his Facebook page that his conscience would not allow him to jump on the plane to safety and leave behind the other Kenyans.

“One available seat was offered to me but I gave it to one stranded Kenyan, Mr Kaberia.

“I found it immoral to jump on the plane to safety and leave my officers and other Kenyans in uncertainty,” said Mr Wetangula.

Dr Kaberia says he was humbled by the gesture. “The UN plane had only two slots — for him and the foreign minister for Zimbabwe.

The two ministers declined but also decided they were also not going to waste the slots,” he said. “From nowhere I heard him mention my name.

“I was escorted in a convoy by the army. We left the hotel at 8pm on Saturday and left the country at 11.45pm.”

Dr Kaberia thanked the Kenya Airways crew in Abidjan who took good care of him well. “I almost forgot my experience in Mali.”