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Witchdoctor and the Grass-eaters

- Part One - Grass is to animals what Ugali is to man, but not anymore. This scenario is fast changing with many people taking to eating grass in the place of their livestock albeit involuntarily. Well, the last time the world was treated to this was about 2600 years ago when King Nebuchadnezzar was condemned to eat grass like cattle for seven years. This had come as a punishment for going against God’s will and seeking divine-like exaltation… this is a story for another day. The case at hand is a lot more difficult to handle as nobody can adequately and authoritatively ascertain its authenticity. All that we got here are stories from sources with lack of facts. Nevertheless, we write because it is an issue that touches on sensitive areas and has drawn the attention of many. For the past several months it has been in the news the case of a witchdoctor with the ability to make culprits eat grass like livestock. This witchdoctor (name withdrawn) comes from Western Kenya and has been per...

Death in the Night

Brothers be Warned … just like the previous day and the day before and the day before that, he got himself drunk and rose up to stagger his way home. But this particular day was rather different because along the way he picked a woman (actually she was laying by the roadside) and asked her home. Drunkards have a fondness for one another; so thinking she was a comrade in the bottle he took her hand and offered to accommodate her for the night. But she wasn't drunk as such. What was happening there was that she had run away from home for harassment or I don't know what; she was carrying a pregnancy at an advanced stage. Now, there is no problem with that except that it was illegitimate. The man (mid 20s) under the influence of the ‘spirits' made advances to her convincing (or confusing) her that after all she can assume the wifely responsibilities. The dude was fresh from chasing away his wife with one kid for not being up to her tasks. The gates opened and he announced the a...

Is It Justifiable

Go ye therefore unto all the world preaching the Good News starting here in Jerusalem, then Judea, then Galilee; unto the four winds of the world These are the closing remarks of Jesus to His Disciples shortly before He lifted up. Well, depending with which theological school of thought one belongs ‘four winds’ can be interpreted to mean many things. Indeed the gospel did begin in Jerusalem and everywhere the Word is spoken is testimony enough that the gospel is now worldwide. We are the ‘four winds’ whenever and wherever it is communicated in our hearing. Talk about the radio, TV, print media, internet, open air meetings, church, street preachers, highway (matatu) pastors e.t.c. Actually, we can easily conclude that Jesus is the most advertised ‘commodity’ in our times. Personally I speak about Him every Sunday through song and speech. But, have we ever stopped to think about how far we need to go in reaching the unreached? The response to the call to propagate the gospel has not been...

Witch Lynching Exercise

Folks this is no snapshot from a horror movie but real-time event: a routine lynching exercise carried out to eliminate witches and wizards who are taught by many to be quite a problem. It is said suspected culprits are marked and warned over a period of time before the 'sungusungu strike". This exercise is practiced all over the larger Gusii region but is not often captured on camera as this. Usually it takes place after something bad bad has happened like death, exhuming bodies, strange illnesses, accidents and other strange happenings. Irate mobs; normally organized groups like the dreaded sungusungu carry out the tracking and burning alive of suspects with the blessing of locals. Their houses are torched, their property destroyed and relatives traumatized from threats and fear. Of late many questions have been asked concerning the legality of the whole exercise. First there are no investigations carried out, there is no judicial system where suspects and victims can appear...