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Category: Features

  • Professing the word musically!

    By Frank Oyosa

    f.oyosa@gmail.com

    Prof during the video shoot for Neno Litasimama. PHOTO| Lewis Mutua

    “Nashangaa na dunia, watu wengi wako mbio kutafuta vya dunia…” True to these words, the human race has been awfully blinded by the pleasures of the world so much so that respect and regard for human dignity have been thrown to the dogs. Our utterances, actions and lifestyle are fueled by personal desires, we no longer live to the glory of God but ourselves. We have entirely lost the values and ethics that differentiate us from animals and not even the loud undertones of the Golden Rule mean anything to us. Nonetheless, the lyrics that follow that powerful opening line bring out a perfect recipe for our own introspection.

    Yet even before we are done with the self-examination, in his own words prof reminds us that “Liko wazi lango la mwokozi…lango la wokovu.” And just how lucky can we be that God’s unending love has His door always open for us whenever we turn back to Him! Professor John Mugubi, the Dean School of Creative arts, Film and Media Studies, Kenyatta University, has embarked on a journey to remind us this. He seems to have seized the perfect time to pass through the door and discover the other side to profess the gospel lyrically. In his young age, having achieved all that accords him the status of a professor, he outrightly made a decision to defy the odds, go beyond the confines of his title and start another journey. A journey in to the world of prophetic music.

    Yet it is not just the words from his songs that are compelling. The ease and simplicity with which he plays around with his wide vocal range and synchronizes the lyrics into the beats is just, for lack of a better word, amazing. And that’s not just it!  As a creative, prof has mastered the art of poetic exploration, and skillfully infuses poetic language and literary elements in to his music like a pinch of salt. Not too much, yet just the right portion to make the music lyrically delicious. Following the opening line of his latest single release Neno Litasimama, prof goes on “…mungu hawampi sikio, mambo yanapo badilika, ndipo wanapo kumbuka kwamba yeye bwana mungu, yake tu ndo yadumu”

    If the truth conveyed in these words does not tick your soul, then wait till you interact with the emotions. The attachment he devotes to the lyrics does nothing else but to help add more eloquence to the already strong messages without much effort.  Whether watching the videos or just listening to the audio, you will see, hear and feel him communicate to the deepest part of your soul. Interestingly though, with his social and friendly character, unless you find him in his musical spaces, you would never imagine him on the microphone.

    Coming from a strong religious background, Prof’s spiritual engagements landed him to the back bench of the church’s choir as a deep-toned bass vocalist. For years on end, he has not only been a devoted Christian but an ardent choir member.  However, his quest for academic excellence could not permit him to explore his musical side, and it is until he felt he has got to the peak of his scholarly journey, that he decided it was time to spread wings further in a different direction.

    Prof. John Mugubi, Dean School of Creative arts, Film and Media Studies, KU

    Luckily for him, at the moment he has nothing much to lose by serving his heavenly master in the best way he can. In any case, he is one of the few professors who have attained the peak of Maslow’s Hierarch of human needs, the Self Actualization. And from the look of things, he is definitely enjoying the ride. “It feels nice and satisfying to know that I am fulfilling God’s expectations of me despite the professional life, and it becomes even more interesting to know that many people did not see this coming.” His music is available on YouTube.

    It is close to impossible to ignore prof’s music and if by any chance you are bold enough to, then you are definitely not going to ignore the reality of the words in the music. Each one of us has a responsibility to God, and that responsibility is fulfilled by our service to humanity. And just like prof, we ought to recognize our talents and make use of them to fulfil this responsibility our social, political or academic status notwithstanding.

  • Africa’s First Woman President- Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

    In honor of Women’s History Month, the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African Women Leaders, heroes and activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By Winnie Barake

    winniemoraa6232@gmail.com

    Thumbnail photo courtesy of britannica.com

    Ellen Johnson Sirleaf (born Ellen Eugenia Johnson, 29th October 1938) is a Liberian politician who served as the 24th President of Liberia from 2006-2018.

    Sirleaf was the first elected female head of state in Africa. Sirleaf was born in Monrovia to a Gola father and Kru-German mother. She was educated at the College of West Africa and completed her education in the United States, where she studied at Madison Business College and Harvard University.

    While in college, she became a member of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority, and she is an honorary member of the Links Incorporated. In 1956, Ellen Johnson married James Sirleaf. They had four sons together before their divorce. She grew up as a Presbyterian, but later joined her husband’s Methodist faith. Through her sons, she has been blessed by ten grandchildren. After her stay in the United States, Ellen returned to Liberia to work in William Tolbert’s government as Deputy Minister of Finance from 1971-1974. Later she worked again in the West, for the World Bank in the Caribbean and Latin America.

    In 1979, she received a cabinet appointment as Minister of Finance, serving to 1980. After Samuel Doe seized power that year in a coup d’état and executed Tolbert, Sirleaf fled to the United States, where she worked for Citibank and then the Equator Bank. In 1985, she retuned back to Liberia to contest a senatorial seat for Montserrado County, an election that was disputed.

    At the beginning of the First Liberian Civil War in 1989, Sirleaf supported Charles Taylor’s rebellion against Doe. She helped raise money for the war and founded the National Patriotic Front of Liberia; with Taylor and Tom Woewiyu. Because of this, Doe’s government recommended that Sirleaf be banned from politics in Liberia for 30 years. But she later opposed Taylor’s handling of the war and his treatment of rival opposition leaders such as Jackson Doe.

    By 1996, the presence of Economic Community of Western African States (ECOWAS) peacekeepers led to a cessation of hostilities. The nation held the 1997 general election, where Ellen returned to Liberia to contest. She ran as the presidential candidate for the Unity Party and placed second in a controversial election, getting 25% of the vote to Charles Taylor 75%. After controversy about the results and being accused of treason, Sirleaf left Liberia and went into exile in Abidjan, Ivory Coast. After the end of the Second Liberian Civil War and the establishment of a transitional government, Sirleaf was proposed as a possible candidate for chairman of the government.

    Ultimately, Gyude Bryant, a political neutral, was chosen as chairman, while Sirleaf served as head of Governance Reform Commission. Sirleaf stood for president as the candidate of the Unity Party in the 2005 general election. She placed the second in the first round of voting behind George Weah, a former footballer. In the subsequent run-off election, Sirleaf earned 59% of the vote versus 40% for Weah, though Weah disputed the results.

    The announcement of the new leader was postponed until further election investigations were carried out. On 23rd November 2005, Sirleaf was declared the winner of the Liberian election and confirmed as the country’s next president and the first woman to be elected as president of an African country. Her inauguration took place on 16 January 2006.

    It was attended by many foreign dignitaries, including; United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and First Lady Laura Bush. As Africa’s first democratically-elected female head of state, she has led Liberia through reconciliation and recovery following the nation’s decade-long civil war, as well as the Ebola Crisis, winning international acclaim for achieving economic, social, and political change.

    Recognized as a global leader for women’s empowerment, President Sirleaf was awarded the prestigious Nobel Prize for Peace in 2011. She is the recipient of The Presidential Medal of Freedom the United States’ highest civilian award—for her personal courage and unwavering commitment to expanding freedom and improving the lives of Africans.

    Her many honors also include the Grand Croix of the Légion d’Honneur, France’s highest public distinction, and being named one of Forbes’s “100 Most Powerful Women in the World.”

  • A FEMINIST LEADER: HUDA MOHAMMED SULTAN

    In honor of Women’s History Month, the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African Women Leaders, heroes and activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By Sharon Jerotich

     (jerotichsharon096@gmail.com) 

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of alchetron.com

    There are not many people whom we can confidently say have changed the course of history for any select group of people however, this one woman changed the course of history for Arabic women everywhere. When the word feminism is mentioned, her name comes to mind.

    Born on 23rd June 1879, Nour Al-Huda Mohamed Sultan started on a path that would be celebrated by women for years to come. She is a feminist leader and founded many organizations, one of them being the Egyptian Feminist Union (EFP) IN 1923. The union sought to reform laws restricting personal freedoms e.g., marriage, divorce, child custody, etc. 

    Huda was educated from an early age in Quranic Arabic and Islamic subjects; this she was taught by female instructors. She was married off to her cousin Ali Pasha Shaarawi at the age of 13. In 1908, Huda founded the first philanthropic society run by Egyptian women. They offered services to poor women and children. She believed that having women run such projects would challenge the view that women are created for men’s pleasure and in need of protection. 

    In 1919, Huda played a key role in the Egyptian revolution, leading women protestors advocating Egyptian independence from the British and the release of male nationalist leaders. 

    Her husband was elected vice president of the nationalist liberal Wafd party and kept her informed on the developments taking place during the revolution. He did this so that she would take his place in the instance he was arrested. With this information, she formed the Wafdist Women Central Committee (WWCC) in 1920 and became its first president. In 1924, she led WWCC in airing their demands, which were ignored. This led her to resignation from the committee. 

    Huda’s biggest fight was with the Harem system where women were secluded and veiled. Those who came from wealthy families had separate buildings and eunuchs who guarded them and also acted as messengers to the outside world. Women also had to go outside veiled. 

    Huda is most known for defying this rule. She once removed her veil in public and trampled on it. Women were shocked but later began to cheer; some even followed suit. 

    Although she passed away on 12th December 1947, her legacy lives on. She deserves to be celebrated for being brave and setting the stage for women all over the world. From Huda, we learn to help other women, defy traditions that are oppressive for women, learn to air our demands, and go for what we want. Nour Al-Huda Mohamed Sultan, we celebrate you!

  • MEAZA ASHENAFI: ETHIOPIA’S REIGNING FEMALE ADVOCATE

    In honor of Women’s History Month, the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African Women Leaders, heroes and activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By Nyokabi Ng’ang’a

    (Leshnyokabi@gmail.com)  

    Thumbnail photo courtesy of en.wikipedia.org

    Difret, a 2014 Ethiopian film, was done in honor of this remarkable woman. Meaza Ashenafi, Ethiopia’s current Chief Justice, is a woman to be held in high esteem. Not only is she the first woman to occupy the seat of Chief Justice in her country, but also, she is the founder of the Ethiopian Women Lawyers Association (EWLA). An association created to offer legal assistance to women; and of note, managed to incept a word in Amharic- Ethiopia’s official language- to describe sexual harassment. “Wesibawi tinkosa” is the Amharic word for sexual harassment: an expression that lacked a name in the country’s lexicon, but got one courtesy of the EWLA. 

    Also, to empower women financially, Meaza cofounded Enat bank, an all first women’s bank in Ethiopia in 2011, where she once sat as the Chair of the bank’s board. 

    Revered as a human rights advocate and a progressive lawyer, Meaza while serving at the EWLA, represented a 14-year-old girl, Aberash Bekele, who was accused of killing a man who had abducted and raped her, all in the name of t’elefa (a cultural practice that allows for the kidnapping of child brides). To Meaza’s credit and that of the entire EWLA team, Aberash won the case placed against her in the court of law and consequently, t’elefa was outlawed in Ethiopia. This case still ranks momentous in Meaza’s career life and also, carries a historical significance in Ethiopia.  

    Photo courtesy of filmfest-frauenwelten.de

    In 2018, when Abiy Ahmed became Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Meaza Ashenafi was appointed head of the Federal Supreme Court- in other terms, as Chief Justice. She took up the position, though with her publicly placed words to the Prime Minister’s office that: “You might not be happy with the decisions I make in this position.”

    Having served also as one of her country’s high court judge; the human rights adviser to the Ethiopian Constitution committee and adviser on gender and women’s rights in the capacity development division of UNECA among many other positions, it is of no doubt that still in the making, is Meaza’s history of changing the narrative of women in leadership. 

  • TAYTU BETUL-THE ETHIOPIAN EMPRESS

    In honor of Women’s History Month, the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African Women Leaders ,heroes and activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By Kessy Thiauru

    kamathithiauru@gmail.com

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of awleadershipnarratives,wordpress.com

    Taytu Betul was the empress of the Ethiopian Empire, under Emperor Menelik II, ruling from 1889-1913. Taytu is speculated to have been born in 1851, the third born of five children.

    She is believed to have been a descendant of a prominent family as it is believed that their family had a ruling foothold in the Northern region of the Empire. It is such growing from such an aristocratic family that might have awakened the leadership abilities in her.

    Although exceptional for women living in her time, Taytu was lucky to get an education. It is believed that this was an opportunity she got after her mother got remarried to an administrator.

    She learned how to read and write Amharic, she learned the language, composed poetry, played chess, and played a begenna (a 10-string musical instrument). It is believed that she was also taught diplomacy, politics, and economics.

    Taytu had been in three other marriages before becoming the third wife to Menelik II, the King of Shoa. She was an important asset to the king as she acted as an advisor during the making of major decisions. She is said to have used her exceptional intelligence to strengthen and extend her power through an adroit blend of patronage, political marriages, and leadership craft.

    In her lifetime some of the remarkable achievements was leading the people, alongside her husband during the war against the Italians. This was after she had torn the treaty between Italians and the Ethiopians, which had intended to make Ethiopia an Italian protectorate.

    When diplomacy failed to settle the conflict over the treaty, Taytu alongside her husband, the emperor marched northwards where she commanded her platoon during the war. Her presence was crucial in the Ethiopian victory at Adwa in 1896, the most significant victory of any African army during the climax of European colonialism.

    She is also remembered as the founder of Addis Ababa, which till to date, is the capital city of Ethiopia.
    As her husband fell ill, she began to concentrate more and more power in her own hands. This eventually provoked public agitation against her and forced her into retirement.

  • THE WOMEN’S ERA: SAMIA SULUHU HASSAN

    By Evelyne Syombua

    (issyombua@gmail.com)

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of bbc.com

    On Friday the 19th of March Tanzania joined WTO, some African countries, and America in making history for black and African women. On the 4th of November 2020, America made history by electing Khamala Harris, who was Biden’s running mate, as the first woman and first black woman vice president. On the 15th of February 2021, the WTO (World Trade Organization) made history by electing Nigeria’s Ngozi Okonjo Iweala as their 17th Director-General. 

    On Wednesday evening she was tasked with announcing the death of the late President  John Magufuli to Tanzanians and now Vice-President Samia Suluhu Hassan has taken his place as the country’s head of state.

    The Vice President Samia Suluhu Hassan was on Friday sworn in at a ceremony in the commercial capital Dar es Salaam before a roomful of dignitaries as Tanzania’s first female president after the sudden death of John Magufuli.

    “It’s not a good day for me to talk to you because I have a wound in my heart,” said Hassan. “Today I have taken an oath different from the rest that I have taken in my career. Those were taken in happiness. Today I took the highest oath of office in mourning,” she said, after being sworn in at 10 am on Friday.

    President Samia Suluhu Hassan Being Sworn In. Photo Courtesy of bbc.com

    She announced 21 days of mourning for Magufuli and public holidays on March 22 and on March 25, the day the late president will be buried in her first public address as president.

    “It is not the time to point fingers at each other but to hold hands and move forward to build the new Tanzania that President Magufuli aspired to,” she said, amid opposition claims about the cause of Magufuli’s death.

    In 2015 she was elected as Tanzanian’s first female vice president as Magufuli’s running mate and last year she was re-elected along with him. His choice of her for a running mate in 2015 came as a surprise, leaping over several other more prominent politicians in the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party, which has been in power in one form or another since independence in 1961. As the constitution states, she should serve out the rest of the five-year term as the President. 

    She joins a shortlist of women on the continent to have run their countries and currently, she becomes Africa’s only current female national leader – the Ethiopian presidency is a largely ceremonial role.

    She was first elected to a public office in 2000 in her native Zanzibar as a special seat member of the Zanzibar House of Representatives and appointed a minister. At the time, she was the only high-ranking female minister in the Cabinet.

     She eyed election to the National Assembly in 2010, after serving two terms, winning the vote by more than 80%. The former President Jakaya Kikwete appointed her as the minister of state for union affairs. In 2014 she came to national prominence as the vice-chairperson of the Constituent Assembly, created to draft a new constitution.  She earned her plaudits through her calm demeanor in managing occasional outbreaks of pandemonium and how she dealt with some of the more outspoken members.

    The Tanzanian’s affectionately know her as Mama Samia – since in the Tanzanian culture that reflects the respect she is held in, rather than reducing her to a gendered role.

    When she was serving as the minister of labour, gender development and children in Zanzibar in 2005, she overturned a ban on young mothers returning to school after giving birth. The late President Magufuli insisted that a similar ban be implemented on the mainland. It is not clear whether she opposed his stance in government.

    Contrary to her predecessor, her leadership style is purportedly quite different from Magufuli’s. Samia Suluhu Hassan has been described as a much more diplomatic political figure. Among her colleagues she is known for following the correct procedures and calmly managing conflicts among MPs.

    “She does have good negotiation skills,” said Sarungi. “I think the fact that she’s very calm and doesn’t often show emotions but is firm, as well as the fact that she’s got a sense of humor. And of course, that contrasts very sharply with the late president, Magufuli.”  

    Sarungi warns against expecting too much from her this soon, “I think the expectations are huge,” she said. “Tanzanians are very eager to open up a new chapter after a very dark, controversial, and extremely divisive five-and-a-half years of John Magufuli.”

    “But at the end of the day, she’s coming from a political party. The same party that gave us John Magufuli.”

    For his hasty and having an intolerant approach towards policymaking the late president was dubbed “The Bulldozer”. The uncertainty of whether she will remain loyal to Magufuli’s controversial policies or push for change remains to be answered. The late President Magufuli drew criticism for banning pregnant girls from attending school and urging women to stop taking birth control pills.

    Nonetheless, many Tanzanians still expressed approval and respect for the decisions Magufuli made while in office. Her first public address leaked a few clues on how she might approach her new role.

    “It was too controversial in the sense that she talked about reconciliation and burying the differences,” said Sarungi. “This is a very flippant remark when there are serious issues  including abuses of human rights…These are issues that she needs to start grappling within a more meaningful way.”

  • THE VERVET MONKEYS

    By Nyokabi Ng’ang’a

    Leshnyokabi@gmail.com

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of ecr.co.za

    “Common to Daystar University, the Grivet monkey, scientifically known as Cercopithecus aethiops- meaning Ethiopian long-tailed monkey, can be easily identified through their ebony-black face.”

    How they Look

    Vervet Monkeys are primates predominant within the Sub-Saharan region. They have an ; Olive-green coat on their outer build and a furry white covering, with a bluish-green layering of the skin, on their torso.

    Scientifically, Vervet monkeys are referred to as Chlorocebus pygerythrus. It is registered that there are six sub-species of the Vervet Monkeys in the world, with the East African region carrying the bulk of the Grivet sub-specie. Common to Daystar University, the Grivet monkey, scientifically known as Cercopithecus aethiops– meaning Ethiopian long-tailed monkey, can be easily identified through their ebony-black face.

    This black hue can also be found on their tail and limb tips. However, unlike the adults, new-born Grivets, have a pink-coloration on their faces and a black coat. Generally, it takes 3-4 months, per records, for a newly born Vervet monkey to gain adult coloration. To identify a female Vervet monkey from a male Vervet monkey, one can mainly use size and reproductive organs as their two determinants.

    Male Vervet monkeys are heavily built-in size weighing between 5-10kgs, whereas the females are recorded to weigh between 3-5kgs. In addition, the male Vervet monkeys can be identified through their turquoise-colored scrotum and their red phallic object, whereas the females can be identified through their two elongated mammae on their chest.

    How they live

    The Vervet monkeys live in troops, which consist of nearly fifty individuals. These troops are led by an Alpha male whose prowess, likeability and scrotum color are a plus in his rule. For a male to rule the troop, they have to contest for the seat and just like any other monkey troop, they have to please the leading females of the troop- who more often than not, become his harem.

    In leading a troop, the Alpha male is expected to keep watch for the safety of all individuals, especially from predators main of which include: Leopards, Chimpanzees, Eagles and Hyenas, and that there are enough food grounds for everyone. The life of an Alpha male is one characterized with comfort- from the constant grooming he receives from the female Vervs -; and contestations from other male Vervs, whether from outside or inside his troop, who are in search for a troop to lead.

    It is stated that the bluer the scrotum of a Vervet male monkey is, the higher are his chances of dominance in a troop. The female Vervet monkeys, on the other hand, are responsible for the grooming and nurturing the young ones of the troop. They also play a huge role in determining their troop leader.

    Living routine

    The daily routine of the Vervet Monkeys is characterized by eating and grooming. As omnivorous eaters, the Vervet monkeys are spoilt for choice with their food picks, ranging from tubers to cereals, vegetable crops, fruits, bird eggs and chicks. To pass time, the Vervet monkeys engage in grooming sessions, which are mainly conducted by the females of the troop. These sessions are essential in creating tight-bonds and a sense of community within the troop.

    To communicate, Vervet monkeys use squeaky sounds and grunts to pass their messages to one another. These sounds relay different emotions; from the expressions of anger to the thrills of joy and grunts of pain and warning; and not forgetting, instigations of fights.

    Male Vervet monkey walking
    Photo courtesy of animalspot.net

    Important to note, as per routine and records, Vervet monkeys usually have an annual, in some cases biannual, mass mating season. This season takes place in April and June, as per given records, with the assurance of having ample food for the troop after the rainy season. Speaking of which, a stable water supply, in addition to temperate settings and dry savannah is the perfect choice of habitation for the Vervet monkeys.

    How safe are they?

    According to a released report by IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature) in 2008, the Vervets were listed as a least concern due to their widespread and stable populace. Albeit, their existence is one that is threatened due to the constant developing human-wildlife conflict.

    The Vervets are closely associated to pests, as they are known for raiding people’s farms and houses hence driving many to kill, stone and even eat them. However, there are better wildlife-saving ways such as using dogs, in which one can keep them off from their homesteads and farms, aside from killing and eating them.

    Fun facts

    Vervet monkeys:

    Can live up to 30 years.

    Have the same subset and number of teeth as humans.

    Have elongated canines that can approximately reach a height of 3.2 cm.

    Have eyes, which are gifted with color-vision, enabling them to source out for palatable grubs and to safeguard themselves against predators.

    Are diurnal in nature, implying their eyesight is impaired at night, hence they seek refuge in trees and roof tops in a measure to avert predation.

    Have cheek pouches used for storing food.

  • A Feminist and Activist: Funmilayo Ransome Kuti

    In honor of black History month (February – Both Men and women ) and Women’s History Month (March- Women Only), the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African leaders,heroes ,activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By Evelyne Syombua

    (issyombua@gmail.com)

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy Pinterest.com

    Funmilayo Anikulapo-Kuti was a teacher, political campaigner and was involved in women’s rights activism and traditional aristocrat . She was seen as the doyenne of female rights in Nigeria, gaining her the moniker “Lioness of Lisabi” for her political activism.

    Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, original name Frances Abigail Olufunmilayo Thomas, also called Funmilayo Anikulapo-Kuti was born on October 25, 1900, Abeokuta, Egbaland [now in Nigeria]. She was born to Yoruba parents (Chief Daniel Olumeyuwa Thomas (a returned slave) and Lucretia Phyllis Omoyeni Adeosolu of the Jibolu-Taiwo family)who were were Christians. She attended Abeokuta Grammar School (a secondary school), from 1914 to 1917 in which she was the first female.

     She taught briefly at the school after which she studied in England (1919–23), where she dropped her English names and shortened her Yoruba name to Funmilayo and she discovered socialism and anti-colonialism.When she resumed teaching at Abeokuta, she married Israel Oludotun Ransome-Kuti, a clergyman and teacher, in 1925. She was the first African woman to drive a car.

    Having being brought up by parents who valued education, she became associated with some of the most important anti-colonial educational movements in Nigeria and West Africa, and fought tirelessly to further women’s access to education and political representation. In reaction to the racism she encountered in Britain, she dropped her Christian name, Frances Abigail by the time of her return.

    Her career in feminist activism begun in 1932 when she founded the Abeokuta Ladies Club (ALC). Membership was mostly Western-educated and working-class women and she expanded it in 1944 to include market women. In 1946 the ALC became the Abeokuta Women’s Union (AWU), and membership was expanded for it to begin working against injustice and the exploitation of market women.

    Lioness of Lisabi :Funmilayo Ransome Kuti. Photo Courtesy of eplangelibrary.wordpress.com

    At first, the AWU campaigned  against price controls, which drastically limited the incomes of market women, and for fair treatment of market women by the government. The union also protested a special tax on women imposed by the local ruler, Sir Ladapo Ademola II. As from 1947 the organization led large demonstrations against Ademola’s government, which led to his temporary abdication in 1949.Greater educational opportunities for women and girls, the enforcement of sanitary regulations, and the provision of health care and other social services for women were among the union’s broader goals.Raising living standards for women and ultimately eliminating the causes of poverty was Ransome-Kuti’s intention to pursue these activities.

    Over 100,000 Abeokuta women worked together to provide social welfare services and to pursue a gender-conscious agenda. The AWU expanded to the Nigerian Women’s Union (NWU) in 1949 a national organization and became known at the Federation of Nigerian Women’s Societies (FNWS) in 1953.The FNWS was dedicated to addressing the concerns of all Nigerian women and improving their position in society, including education, suffrage, health care, and other social services.

    She also served several terms on the local council of Abeokuta between 1949 and 1960. Though unsuccessful, she ran for a seat in 1951 in the regional assembly as the candidate of the National Council of Nigeria and the Cameroons (NCNC), which she had helped found in 1944. The FNWS became associated with the Women’s International Democratic Federation, in 1953 and Ransome-Kuti was elected a vice president of the organization. After which she subsequently lectured in several countries on the conditions of Nigerian women. In 1959, she ran for the assembly as an independent candidate, after the NCNC rejected her bid for a second candidacy , This led to the splitting of the NCNC vote and ensured the opposing party’s victory.

    The consequences for her action were expulsion from the NCNC and she formed her own party, the Commoners’ People’s Party, which was disbanded one year later. By collapsing of her CPP party one year later, her political influence in Nigeria and her following among women in Abeokuta had declined significantly.

    For her to feel like she belonged to the Yoruba Culture, she changed her surname to Anikulapo-Kuti in the early 1970s . The family property in Lagos ,which Fela had transformed into a commune that he called the Kalakuta Republic, was stormed by 1,000 soldiers in 1977. She was dragged by her hair and thrown out a second-story window by the soldiers during the assault.  She died of complications from her injuries the following year.

    “Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti was a pioneering nationalist who fought against British colonialism and a cultural nationalist…a pioneer African feminist and a human rights activist who was tireless in her campaigns for women’s rights and for economic, political, and social justice. She was an educator who gave a voice to the voiceless and education to the uneducated.” – Oxford Dictionary of African Biography.

  • Culture Corner: Polygyny among the Maasai of Kenya

    By Hilmelda Tenkeu

    (hilmeldatenkeu@gmail.com)

    Thumbnail Photo Courtesy of theconversation.com

    It is not inconceivable that the average Maasai man marries three women or even more. That is in fact what is expected of him, as long as he has the financial capacity and ability to cater to them and the offspring of that union. The Maasai are the most well-known and recognized indigenous ethnic group in East Africa.

    Group of Maasai Men . Photo Courtesy of exploring-africa.com

    They live in southern Kenya and northern Tanzania along the Great Rift Valley. Their population in Kenya is expected to be about one million and counting. Despite civilization and western cultural influences, the Maasai are widely known for clinging to their traditional way of life. It’s common to see them in their traditional dress, even in the streets of the cities.

    The culture of the Maasai is mainly based on their cattle. From them, they obtain everything they need: meat, milk, and blood. Another aspect of culture among the Maasai is polygyny. They account for the majority of polygynous marriages in Kenya but from the look of things, the culture might evolve and change

    The Maasai culture is predominantly patriarchal, and that is why a girl’s childhood is dominated by a strict avoidance, and fear, of her father and other men. Her marriage prospects and her family’s reputation hinge on her ability to develop an acute sense of respect. She is socialized to accept her subservience to her future husband.

    This is one of the reasons for which polygyny is still practiced among the Maasai. The girl is taught to respect the man and even fear him.

    Back in the day, women did not have a say in the choice of their husbands but as time goes, culture evolves. Now, a woman can choose whom she wants to marry, bearing in mind that she will be joined by another woman as the marriage journey goes on.

    These women have grown up in polygynous homes and, that is what they know to be the best form of marriage. It is not essentially a practice to be abhorred, so far, there have not been major complaints.

    The practice is organized and respects certain norms that have been established and followed through to date. When a young Maasai man is ripe for marriage (usually around 25 years old), he marries the lady he has been wooing (if both families have no objection). This young girl is habitually around 15 years of age and knows the fellow. Before the young man marries, he makes sure he is financially secured to look after this family that he is about to start.

    This aligns with the general thought in the African society that a man is responsible for his family. He is the sole provider for his family and has to make sure nobody lacks. The upbringing of the boy child in the Maasai community ensures this is followed .

    Whereas the girl is always with her mother and other ladies, learning how to cook, look good, take care of herself and her future household, the boy child is with his father, the other men, or herding cattle. He has to learn to be a man, handle disputes amongst many wives and always provide for his family no matter how large it gets.

    The boy child grows up taking care of cattle and other livestock. By the time he has been circumcised and is learning the ways of marriage, his father gives him his own cattle and he begins to take care of these and multiply, such that his own family never lacks.

    This is one of the reasons for which polygyny is considered good by many cultures in Africa and the world at large. Yaayai, the first wife of a Maasai polygynous marriage has been interviewed by a popular and certified youtuber on the topic of polygyny.

    To the question why do the Maasai practice polygyny, she says “the Maasai have many wives because it is good… many wives bear many daughters from whose bride prices the family gets cows and this adds the family wealth.”. “I liked it a lot when the second wife came in, I was very happy. Even when the third was brought in… we live happily together… no we are not jealous of each other, we live together, cook together, take care of the children together”, she adds.

    A Maasai Man and his wives. Photo courtesy of bbc.com

    Whereas Yaayai welcomed her co-wives, Josephine another first wife to a Maasai man says she looked for her two co-wives. After about ten years with her husband, she found him a second wife “to help her take over “, she says. Then, a third who was strong enough “to take care of their husband, since the two of us are already tired with children”., she adds. Here, the first wife found the others and we understand that she wanted help in the chores, taking care of the children, and satisfying her husband. Her husband has to be satisfied: no matter what that entails.

    Yaayai explains this further when she says “I like my husband to have other wives so that we can be together. For example, in the afternoon like now, sitting outside together with my co-wives. We talk, we spend time together, even without our husband… whatever you were raised with, that’s what becomes your truth. That is why we don’t want our husbands, only to have one wife.”

    Talking about the next generation and polygyny among the Maasai is quite sad for Yaayai. “Young people don’t want to follow this tradition anymore; I can see that they will stop doing it because it shows that they don’t want to be in polygynous marriages anymore.

    The world is changing… people have come to know many things and many Maasais want to dilute our culture”, she laments. There is no single definition of a happy marriage. Yaayai, Josephine together with their co-wives say they are happy in their marriages and prefer polygyny to Monogamy.

    Another person from a different culture will never understand why she would share her husband with another woman. In other cultures, two men can marry and two women too.

    It is the diversity of cultures that makes the world a beautiful place to live in and like Yaayai says, “whatever you were raised with, that is what becomes your truth”. Let our different truths, not disqualify another’s.

  • Professor Wangari Maathai: A Legend, an Icon

    In honor of Black History Month (February), the Involvement Newspaper will be featuring African leaders, heroes, and activists in a bid to remember their contributions towards a better Africa.

    By: Nicholas Kweyu (nicholaskweyu99@gmail.com)

    Thumbnail photo courtesy of potentash.com

    Professor Wangari Muta Maathai was born on April 1st 1940 in Nyeri. She went to Loreto High School and graduated in 1959. On a scholarship scheme known as the “Kennedy Airlift”, she went on to study biological sciences at the Benedictine College in Kansas. Following this, she got a master’s degree from the University of Pittsburg. Upon her return to a newly independent Kenya, she earned her PhD in 1971 from the University of Nairobi becoming the first woman in East and Central Africa to attain a doctorate. She died in 2011 at the age of 71 following a long struggle with ovarian cancer.

    The famous activist was involved in humanitarian and environmental groups such as the National Council of Women of Kenya which she joined in 1976. Here, she interacted with rural women who lamented on the social and environmental conditions affecting poorer Kenyans. She developed a community-based tree planting scheme that grew into the Green Belt Movement (GBM) in 1977. This movement has facilitated the planting of more than 51 million trees in Kenya. The GBM also works towards poverty reduction as it trains women in skills such as beekeeping and forestry; the preservation of land is therefore accompanied by a source of income. The movement’s activism spurred similar initiatives in other African countries including Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Ethiopia.

    Another of the professor’s contributions to environmental conservation was her adamant resistance to government plans to erect a 62-story skyscraper in Nairobi’s Uhuru Park in the 1980s. This saw her get beaten, tear-gassed and thrown into then-President Daniel Arap Moi’s notorious underground cells.
    “Every person who has ever achieved anything has been knocked down many times. But all of them picked themselves up and kept going, and that is what I have always tried to do,” she once said.

    Wangari Maathai protesting against a skyscrapper being built in Uhuru park. Photo courtesy of fatumavoice.org

    This was only one of several instances of the humanitarian’s challenging of President Moi. She was among those who championed a multi-party system and democracy in the backdrop of Moi’s dictatorial rule. She also, at the risk of her life, consistently spoke out about human rights injustices perpetrated by Moi’s government; with the help of Bishop Ndingi Mwana a’ Nzeki, she even disguised herself during a government crackdown on human rights activists to deliver a speech on the injustices of the Rift Valley conflicts in the 1990s. Wangari Maathai also participated in a hunger strike to pressure the government to release political prisoners.

    Her tremendous efforts resulted in her being the first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize in 2004 for her “contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace.” Later in 2009, she was named the United Nations Messenger of Peace in recognition of her deep commitment to the environment.

    To this day, we celebrate Wangari Maathai Day- renamed from Africa Environment day in 2012- every 3rd of March which focuses on celebrating Wangari Maathai’s commitment to environmental responsibility, peace and justice.