Feature-The Ikhonga Murwe

Travel Feature

THE IKHONGA

MURWE-The Place Where Your Sins Are Forgiven and All Your Problems annulled BY AMUGASHA KALENGEKA

It is 6:30 in the morning at the

South of Kakamega town. We are

Murwe-the mysterious crying stone

of Ilesi.The signature tune of a reverberating Isikuti can be heard

cutting through the thick fog laced

with the glorious sing songs of the

sonorous birds of Kakamega.

At this point we are facing the

Isukha community’s most sacred of treasures. Standing tall is a

panoramic view of a mighty 40

meters high granitic tor that has

features resembling the human

anatomy with ‘eyes’ dripping with

‘tears’  simulating someone crying.

The tor is green and thick with

mosses plowing most of its surface signifying survival through tests of

time, braving agents of denudation.

Our guide,Mzee Umahala Okubasu, 73,draws our attention to a caravan of semi-naked individuals coming through the Shiminyiro – a cave at the foot of towering rock.

“These are people of Oluswa

victims or in some case products of

incest”, said Mzee Okubasu,”they

have come here to be cleanced,

these rocks here have a magical

powers to clear away all your

iniquities  and problems-you just

have to confess and all your problems will glide away with the

morning sun”.

Shiminyiro is Luhya for, the

sqeezer, it refers to the attribute of

the rock that is believes to squeeze

out all the transgression from its

visitors.

Over the years the Ikhonga Murwe

has been a permanent feature that underpins the culture of the Isukha

people of Western Kenya. Apart

from Kakamega Forest famed for

its diverse birds and insects, the

Ikhonga Murwe projects significantly

as one of the pillars that

Characterize the western province tourism circuit.

According to Ephantus Kinyua,the

Western Kenya tourism circuit

manager, it is estimated that  about

3000-5000foreignors pay visit to

the mystic rock annually, pumping in

over ksh.3 billion to the economy in

form of the much needed foreign exchange.

As we take a sightseeing tour

around the crying stone we meet

with a snaking pilgrimage of

worshippers who have come to pay

tribute to their gods.

“They are from Legio Maria

sect”, Mzee Okubasu tells us, “they

make annual pilgrimage to this place

to fulfill their religious requirements”.

An eloquent skilled orator,

Mzee Okubasu takes us through the

myths, epics and folklores that

surround this gods bit of artwork.

Among the narratives imbibed into

Mzee Okubasu head is the story of

Nandi warriors who in frustration of

the stone’s sorcerous power that

helped the Isukha win wars against

them, tried to pull it down. It is said  the hundreds of warriors in the

failed attempt were struck down in

the rock’s lethal vengeance.

Oriedo Chuma, an anthropologist at

the mines and geology department

in Kakamega confirms that the

Ikhonga Murwe was formed 6

million years ago, long before man

walked the surface of the earth.

He explains that the ‘tears’ trickling

down from the rocks is

indeed poisonous water comingled

with quartz, alkali, feldspar and mica.

But to the Isukha people living

around the Ikhonga Murwe, the

crying is something they look

forward to because is a precursor

for good things to come.

It is no wonder that when famine

strikes, the Isukha asks the gods of

the mighty Ikhonga Murwe for intercession.

From fires petering out in the

presence of the morning light our

guide explains to us that some

rituals had just been carried out in

the heart of the night when it is

believed that the malevolent spirits

are asleep.

The western tourism circuit however

suffers some extreme setbacks from

the almost immotorable roads in the region.

Mr.Ephantus notes with deep concern

that the poor states of the roads and inadequate five stars

accommodation facilities has robbed

the region of the numbers in

tourism tariff in comparison to

places like the coast where Kenya

highway authority has concentrated

its efforts.

We culminate our journey by a visit

to the Isukha river, where water

from the sacred stones of Ilesi spits

into it with a thunderous gush. As

the Isikhu meanders through the

woods and the great Ikhonga

Murwe cry its heart out, we trace

our path back awed at the creativity

of mother nature.

Condom shortage? Blame it on Mututho

Condom shortage? Blame it on Mututho

The recently passed alcohol law is proving counterproductive if the sentiment in the grapevines is anything to go by. The reduction of drinking hours courtesy of this too much ado about nothing law has sends revelers into much thinking about a plan B. And from this thinking, a solution was hatched that seems more pernicious than the booze combined with its treacherous effects- the Red Light Districts.

The Koinange streets of this part of the world are alive today and kicking than never before. In stead of the booze (the condemned bottle) the drunkard now has with him a hip flashing night bird for company. A right thinking Kenyan can of course deduce the package that Mututho and the prostitute will be bringing to the harmless drunkard. The poor drankard who would have died in prime age of alcohol related ailments is now forced to either die early of STIs or rush for the revered rubber.

In fact in Nyeri ,(there is no doubt that people from this land are known to be the most enterprising in the country) night birds charge between ksh.300-1000 a round for revelers without condoms and as low as ksh. 20 kama una yako-as the advert used to say.

In such a hard time when Kenya is chocking with inflation necessitated by the greed in the oil industry, Ksh.300 let alone 1,000 is not everybody’s money. It is single meal’s budget. So a simple pack of three condoms that goes at 10 bob or sometimes free of charge would go along way in helping the poor ex drunkard save something at the same time have his fun.

Maybe we need to rethink again if we need this law again. But I don’t see us repealing it anytime soon. So, more rounds of condoms again Mr. Government!

AMUGASHA KALENGEKA-KAKAMEGA

University Elections –impunity at its budding level

It is saddening to see that elite university student who the society looks up to with so much expectation indulge in dodgy election theatrics in the model of voter bribery, hooliganism and smear campaigns.

University students as crème de la crème of the society are expected to be champions of proper governance and can only do so by providing proper models for the rest of the society to emulate.

Ironical as it may sound, aspirant politicians woe voters by buying them alcoholic drinks. The rowdy drunkards then pay back their benefactors by instigating acts of violence against their opponent.

In the same vain, candidates and election officials are nominated and appointed under curiously circumstances that cast aspersions on the credibility of the election process. Voting  is aligned in tribal patterns with aspirants urging their tribal foot soldiers to turn up in large numbers to vote for ‘a brother’. Most of all country’s party politics come into play and tribal realignment are taken to another level with top politicians grouping to support ‘one of their own’. Surely, are these the kind of leaders that we are grooming? Is this the kind of leadership that we want? Is this the system that we want to emulate?

Most of the student leaders use university election as a platform to catapult them to major elective politics in country. And if they employ the same gimmicks then the prospect of change in our political sphere becomes farfetched.  

And even more disheartening is the fact that other students applaud such misguided moves and even go as far as campaigning for and bankrolling such candidates. This is impunity at it is budding level.

In the 1990’s universities were known as parallel partners in the quest for transparency in governance and they were also a major player in the fight for multipartism. But with the current erosion in virtue, on what platform will universities stand to castigate errant leadership?

Universities are supposed to be centres of excellence where good leaders with good moral are nurtured. Therefore it remains solely to the university students and the administration to roll out sound models that the rest of the society will be eager to associate with.

AMUGASHA KALENGEKA

MASINDE MULIRO UNIVERSITY-KAKAMEGA.