Kabarnet, a small urban centre in Baringo Central held a special place in the life of former President Daniel Moi, who died in Nairobi on Tuesday aged 95.
It is here in Kabarnet that Mzee Moi spent his time with residents through out his reign and had himself a place to spend a night whenever he was around.
A bold, authoritative monument bearing the iconic 'Rungu ya Nyayo' with inscriptions of peace, love and unity welcomes visitors to the town.
It is this symbolic monument that open gates to the tiny yet historical town that besides being historically profound, brings to life the resounding philosophy of love that has since existed.
The monument, complete with a podium, details how Mzee Moi could enter the town in style, addressing the residents by it before proceeding to the Kanu office a few metres away.
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He would spend the night chatting with elders around a bonfire. Perhaps, that is why he did away with alcoholism to bring elders closer.
To date, a non-alcohol directive Moi gave decades ago, is still being adhered to. There are no clubs in the town.
Sacho, Tenges and Timboiwo trading centres within the region have followed suit.
"Before Kabarnet hotel was built, Moi used to spend nights at the Kenya School of Government here in Kabarnet whenever he was around. He had a room and a hall that had a chimney where he would sit around with elders and share stories over a bonfire," Mr Jason Mulama, deputy director at Kenya School of Government, Kabarnet, said.
The room where he used to spend in the 1970s and 80s, he said, has been turned into a computer laboratory.
The Kenya School of Government, Mr Mulama said, started off as a district development school where basic skills like agricultural courses and tailoring courses were offered. Overtime, it evolved and was upgraded to Kenya School of Government.
"Mzee loved education and he invested so much in it. He was patriotic and loved every corner of this country but also made sure Kabarnet had schools to offer skills and bring people across the country to come and learn. This institution currently trains leaders across the country," Mr Mulama said.
Kabarnet School of Government is part of the six campuses offering leadership courses across the country.
To residents, Kabarnet is slowly losing its luster.
“But alcoholism is slowly creeping in. Mzee had tented it so well and rescued it from tangles but what will happen to the current crop of youth if all that was preserved is left to waste? Alcoholism, then, was unheard of. He banned clubs in Kabarnet. He wanted sober people who would foster peace and he knew very well how to tame and tackle the vices," Mr Nelson Kipkelum, an elder said.
Lying at an altitude of 1,815 metres, Kabarnet is located on the eastern edge of the Kerio Valley, creating brilliant scenery. Perhaps it is the lush greenery, towering exotic trees that richly line the roadsides or the striking picturesque of undulating Kerio escarpment, the rolling ridges and Tugen hills that makes Kabarnet magnetically charming.
Or, perhaps the warmth of people who seem to have lived and practice sobriety after Moi did away with drinking dens and bars where his heartbeat resounded in.
These charms must have undoubtedly kept Moi frequenting this small town named after an Australia missionary, Albert Edmund Barnett, who was member of the Africa Inland Mission. Barnet first came to central Kenya in 1908.
The love for Kabarnet, Kabartonjo and Sacho, were in equal measure. It is here that residents felt the warmth of power, savored fruits of development and nurtured the Nyayo philosophy.
