County, National Museums to rehabilitate historical site in Thika

A 15-foot diameter fig tree reinforced with a metal bar inside the Mugo wa Kibiru historical site in Thika. [Courtesy]

Kiambu County government has moved to protect the famous Mugo Wa Kibiru historical site in Thika Town to restore its heritage.

Over the years the shrine that was filled with indigenous trees has been turned into a den of immorality.

The shrine was rehabilitated and launched on May 18, 2002, by National Museums of Kenya Director General George Abungu.

The treasured home to Kikuyu customs, which has been on the verge of being grabbed by unscrupulous individuals, will now be rehabilitated by the county government in collaboration with the National Museums of Kenya.

Rose Wangui, who volunteered to take care of the site years ago, said the monument has lately been abused by a section of the public who engage in immoral acts.

"I am forced to chase away young men and women who come here to engage in immoral acts. Other residents use this place to relieve themselves," Wangui said.

In her youthful years, Wangui recounts that she used to welcome the founding father Jomo Kenyatta at the site describing it as home to the Kikuyu community's rich history.

Johana Chege, a Kikuyu elder from Murang'a and a frequent visitor of the site said that due to the neglect, overgrown shrubs and grass have been turned into a sex den by youths.

"It is only Wangui and myself who take care of this place. The county and national governments neglected it many years ago. What we get from well-wishers and students who come here to learn about the historical site is what we use to main it," Johana added.

They called on the government to put up a Kikuyu men's abode, Thingira to facilitate traditional teachings among the youths.

Known as home of the famous Mugo wa Kibiru's fig tree that withered just as Kenya prepared for independence, the three acres of land was also used as a place of worship by the Kikuyu community.

It is at the site that Mzee Kenyatta planted another Mugumo tree in 1969 to replace the one that had fallen when he toured the area to open Thika Hospital, presently Thika Level Five Hospital.

The site was used by the Kikuyu prophet Kibiru, who foretold the country's invasion by white settlers who would later colonize Kenyans.

Kibiru would later predict the fall of a Mugumo tree, touted as the largest in the country that would mark the end of British rule in Kenya, a prediction that came true.

Of great concern to locals and the county government is the increased appetite by land grabbers who have been salivating for the prime two-acre parcel of land at the heart of Thika town.

Kiambu County Executive Committee of Education, Culture and Social Services, Nancy Gichung'wa, said the county government will begin to put up ablution blocks, a fence and a gate at the monument to protect it from further destruction and grabbing.

"Besides the shrine being well lit and clean, tap water pumped to the location, the county government of Kiambu will plant quality grass, maintain and plant more indigenous trees to give it a better look," Gichung'wa said.

Speaking during a public participation forum at the site on February 13, she announced that the county is keen to recover grabbed public land.

Thika Township MCA Kennedy Mwangi who also attended the forum, called on the government to cancel all title deeds for persons encroaching on the shrine's land.

"The site will be used for intercessory, recreational and learning purposes by members of the community regardless of their religious backgrounds," Mwangi said.

The garden is one of the forgotten historical sites in the town. It is said to have been neglected because it was at the heart of a colonial town that would later become the Birmingham of Kenya owing to its industrious nature.