Omogusii Omokimbizi¹

1 This is the title of a Gusii secular popular song performed by an artist, Henry Sagero Maiko and his Bonyakoni Kirwanda Band. The phrase literally means ‘The Gusii People as Refugees’.

: A Gusii²

2 The Gusii is an ethnic group found mainly in the western Kenya region (formerly Nyanza Province). They are also called Kisii or Abagusii and their indigenous language is called Ekegusii or Gusii Language. They primarily occupy the current Nyamira and Kisii counties of Kenya

Popular Artist’s Meditation on the Post-election Violence in Kenya

ABSTRACT:

The 2007–2008 post-election violence in Kenya marked a momentous period in the country’s history due to the unprecedented loss of life, displacement, destruction of property, animosity and ethnic strife, courtesy of the disputed presidential elections. The period is chronicled in the minds and works of local artists and historians for posterity and to reflect the country’s identity. A Gusii secular pop artist, Henry Sagero Maiko, and his Bonyakoni Kirwanda Band, recounts the numerous events of this period in their song “Omogusii Omokimbizi”, with shocking revelations of the ghastly deeds and callous experiences undergone by the kinsfolk and citizenry in the given period. These form the focus of this paper, which highlights the popular artist’s reflection on the pre-election, election and post-election period occurrences, the resilience of the Kenyan populace, and the way forward, which depicts the measures to avert a relapse in the future.

KEYWORDS:

• post-election violence
• elections
• Kenya
• Gusii
• popular music
• artist
• Sagero
• vengeance
• kinsfolk

Notes

1 This is the title of a Gusii secular popular song performed by an artist, Henry Sagero Maiko and his Bonyakoni Kirwanda Band. The phrase literally means ‘The Gusii People as Refugees’.

2 The Gusii is an ethnic group found mainly in the western Kenya region (formerly Nyanza Province). They are also called Kisii or Abagusii and their indigenous language is called Ekegusii or Gusii Language. They primarily occupy the current Nyamira and Kisii counties of Kenya

3 This (1,133) is the official number given in government records (CIPEV 2008) but the actual number allegedly exceeds this, bearing in mind the large number of people to date still unaccounted for.

4 Most of the people affected by the PEV used to work as tea pickers on the tea estates in the neighbouring Kericho, Bomet and Nandi counties. The vehicles of their respective estates were used to transport them to safer grounds.

5 This is a Kisii proverb which means that when one has siblings, or a next of kin, his/her problems are quickly and hurriedly attended to/solved to his/her satisfaction, unlike one who has none (Bosire and Machogu, 2013).