Another piece of interesting information that emerged in the course of research for my other post, from my impeccable sources close to former ethics PS John Githongo is the nickname that he earned from colleagues deep in the Kibaki administration from April 2004.
They called him Mujaruo which is an obnoxious reference terming him a member of the Luo tribe. Githongo is actually a pure Kikuyu but it is clear what irritated and provoked his colleagues to give him such a nickname was the fact that he was more Kenyan than Kikuyu at heart. In other words instead of "eating" with his fellow tribesmate and enriching himself, Githongo chose to question and probe and generally do his job as a true Kenya patriot. In this case this appears to have been seen as extreme betrayal by his fellow tribesmen hence the sarcastic nickname; Mujaruo.
It is instructive that this blogger has been called exactly the same name by many commentators of this blog here because of my views on the past injustices committed to the Luo community for political reasons. My constant clarifications that neither my Kamba father or Luhya mother have any Luo blood in them has fallen on deaf ears. After this recent Githongo revelation it has become very clear to me what has been meant by these seemingly deaf commentators.
In fact it is safe to assume that the exact nickname will be used across the country in the run to the elections to refer to many supporters or even mere sympathizers of ODM presidential candidate Raila Odinga and his political party.
Many Kenyans would prefer to bury their head in the sand over this sensitive Kikuyu issue in Kenya. Yet it continues to raise tensions in the country at an alarming rate more so that for the first time in the history of the country we have two major presidential candidates from Kenya's two most visible tribes facing each other in a winner takes all race for State House. Older Kenyans can imagine how volatile elections would have been in 1969 with the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga opposing Jomo Kenyatta in a direct presidential election.
But clearly the biggest hurdle for the Gikuyu community is for them to accept that it is possible for the country to be ruled by a non-Kikuyu and in particular a Luo and it will NOT be the end of the world. Already we have had declarations in this blog that if Raila odinga were to win the presidency some Kenyans from the house of Mumbi would go into a self-imposed exile and renounce their Kenyan citizenship.
