No
more Hustling, Vows Former Members of Outlawed Sect
By Henry Onyango
The
current unemployment rate in Kenya and most of the third world countries is
alarming. The most affected quarter of the population is the youth, that which
commands the greatest number.
Several
plans by the leaders to respond to the unending crisis have so far been a
battle in futility as the number increases daily, monthly and annually probably
due to the increased birth rate and bad governance in these lowly developed
nations.
Kenya’s
infamous 2007-2008 post poll chaos where over one thousand people lost their
lives and hundreds of thousands misplaced is a clear indicator of the
phenomenon. The idle youth were used by
some politicians and the rich to loot, kill and injure those they considered
their rivals for their own political good and supremacy.
Any
group of youth during this time that seemed united was easily brought into
these rather shoddy deals that would later lead to criminal charges against the
incumbent leaders by the international criminal court (ICC) and thus the most
vulnerable group turned out to be mungiki-an outlawed group that has
its origin in parts of central Kenya.
The
outlawed sect-mungiki that majorly composed of idle unemployed youth were
mostly involved in the violence in Nairobi, Naivasha and some parts of the
former Rift valley province according to media reports in and around that time.
After
the release of the then self proclaimed leader of the illegal gang, Maina Njenga
from the Nakuru’s GK prisons in 2011, he formed an organization that would
later revive the dirty looking, shabby and rogue youths to an income generation
activity rather than indulging in crime.
The
Nakuru’s October 11, 2009 inter-denominational conference marked the birth of
Amani sasa foundation.
The
organization main objectives are to empower young people, not necessarily
mungiki adherents, through development projects and shun away from criminal
activities and drug abuse.
“While
I was forming the organization ,some mistaken it for a political party that
would see me enter politics but my vision was to help the youth to stop crime”,
the former mungiki leader and bishop of Amazing International ministries,
Maina Njenga was quoted saying in one of
the local dailies.
The
organization is picking up with a relatively unrelentless speed in most parts
of Nairobi; in Kawangware 46 estate the foundation reaps great benefits to the
community.
Today
the estate is regarded ‘worth staying’, thanks to the tireless thirty two
member team of the ‘ongwaro’ Amani Sasa Foundation.
“At
this point our main interest is giving back to the community where we belong to
and am glad my fellow colleagues are all committed to achieve the objective”,
says John Kamau, chairman Amani sasa foundation, Kawangware branch.
The
soft speaking former drug addict says that the organization is struggling to
beat all odds so as to ensure they offer better services to the community and
earn some income to keep them going.
However,
he reiterates the road towards achieving their desired target has always been
hit by several setbacks that to some extent paralyzed the smooth operation of
the group.
He
cites inadequate finance since what they earn from the service is not enough to
satisfy their daily needs.
The
organization majorly offers services like garbage collection, car washing
amongst many others to the community at a relatively cheaper price.
They
have opened up two car washing stations and a large garbage site along Gitanga
–Kawangware road in the larger Kawangware area.
Also the group has links with Nairobi City County where they have helped
in loading the city council garbage trucks at their garbage site at a
substantial amount of fee.
“Badala ya kuvuta bangi na kutumiwa
na hawa wanasiasa kuwapigania ni heri ufanye ka works inakupa ka kitu jo”(instead of smoking
bhang and being used by the politicians to fight for them its better you get
some work to do so as earn some little income) ,says Mike Njoroge ,a member of
the group in slang Swahili language.
It’s not only in
Kawangware area where the group has taken toll, other parts of Nairobi such as Kibera,
Mlolongo,Kayole ,Dandora amongst others boast of the magnificent performance of
the organization.
In fact the
organization have developed better strategies to cope with the current high standards of living and unending skyrocketing prices of basic commodities to
raise some income. Most of them have
completely left use of hard drugs in order to save for their families.
Julius Munda, a member of the organization in Kibera’s
Katwekera slums says that car washing services he does is what caters for his
two children boarding school fees in secondary school back at their rural home
in Siaya County.
Although the government of Kenya offers subsidy to the
secondary education, Munda says that boarding cost still remains expensive to
the ordinary citizens.
He says that such similar foundations need to be set up to
control rampant unemployment and crime rate amongst the youth.
Although the
government of Kenya offers subsidy to the secondary education, boarding cost
has all along been quite expensive in most schools.
According to criminology analysts, if Maina Njenga and
company would have taken a chance not to form the organization early enough,
there would be an increased robbery and theft in the city than ever before.
They argue that more police cells and prisons would have
been erected countrywide to counter to the increased crime rate in the city as
more of the mungiki loyalists would have formed a criminal gang to carry out
crime.
To an organization whose origins have been so intricate and
is luring thousands of youth join the sect, an initiative such as this is
laudable .However it’s recommended that the local and international NGO’s
offered support to combat chances of further involvement in such criminal acts
in future.
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