Did the Mugumo tree strike Njuguna?

By Boniface Gikandi

NYERI, KENYA: As millions of Kenyans were anxiously waiting for the Supreme Court verdict on April 16 to know whether Uhuru Kenyatta’s victory in the March 4 General Election was going to be upheld following Raila Odinga’s petition, something strange was happening in a remote village in Murang’a.

An ancient Mugumo tree believed to be 200 years old fell.  More bizarre things were to follow in Githunguri village, a few kilometers from Kenol, the district headquarters of Maragwa.

The gigantic Mugumo tree had been a centerpiece landmark in Mzee Nelson Njuguna’s farm. So engrossed were the villagers in court proceedings that little regard was paid to the fall of the tree, which was occasioned by heavy rains, wind and lightning.

Shortly before and after the March 4 General Election, other ancient mugumo trees had fallen, fuelling speculation that this was prophetic fulfillment of generational leadership transition.

Persuaded by elders’ views, excited Kenyans in Giakanja (Nyeri) and Thika had already started celebrating Mr Uhuru’s win long before the court verdict.

Heated debate

The falling of the mugumo trees, some believed, was an indication of the passing of the  leadership mantle to a younger generation (Itueaka). The same spirit prevailed at 6 am in the homestead of Mzee Njuguna, 87.

Although a heated debate later arose on what should be done with the tree, some elders, as Nelson Gitau explained, thought it wise to split it and use it for firewood.

Their argument was that the tree and its branches occupied about 50 metres of land, which could otherwise be used for other purposes.

“A meeting was held and Mzee Njuguna was given a nod to split the tree and later dispose of the firewood,” recalls Mzee Gitau.

Later Njuguna identified a Thika businessman who supplied firewood to a cooking oil processing industry and a tea processing company in the region.

Family members say they are not aware of how much the supplier paid for the firewood although they confirm an agreement was reached. Barely a month after the court ruling and the fall of the Mugumo, things turned nasty.

Mzee Njuguna met his death on a Sunday morning – on May 12 as he was walking to Githunguri Anglican Church. According to police records the late Njuguna was crashed at the market centre as a matatu was reversing to pick a passenger.

As horrified villagers watched and screamed, the reversing vehicle crashed the old man. He succumbed on his way to a local hospital.

 His son Mundie Nelson described his father as a leader who was consulted widely by the community of various issues. 

Holy tree

Superstitious locals are convinced Mzee Njuguna unwittingly authored his own death.

They believe the death was as a result of splitting and selling firewood from the sacred tree.

The Mugumo tree, according to many Gikuyu conservatives is sacred. It is a taboo to use any part of the tree for firewood or timber.

“It should have been left to rot in the farm,” Mzee Gitau explains.

Sources who sought anonymity say that some village elders had tried to dissuade the old man from disposing off the tree but he declined.

“We tried telling him that it was unwise to split “the Tree of God” but he could not listen. He argued that the mugumo was just like any other tree,” recalls the elder.

But elder Gitau dismisses this as untrue saying that a number of elders and freedom fighters had been consulted by the deceased and had actually declared it safe to cut and sell the firewood.

And Njuguna was buried at his farm a distance away from the stump of the tree as some traditionalists feel that mugumo is a holy tree.

Strong association

Long before independence, freedom fighters had strong association with the tree which was in the olden days used as shelter during sacrifices.

“Whenever our land was devastated by drought or any other man made or natural calamities, elders without blemish would offer a sacrifice under a mugumo tree. At times answers were instant,” recalls elder Mwangi Njenga.

He adds that a prophet had once declared that if a mugumo tree in Thika ever split, that would signify the end of colonial rule in Kenya.

“Some colonialists tried to forestall this by reinforcing the mugumo tree with steel wires. However in 1960, the tree split and Kenya got independence shortly after,” elder Njenga says.