Once upon a time the late Archbishop Ndingi mwanaa’Nzeki said, “If you swear by the Bible, you can tell as many lies as you wish and get away with murder. But you dare not tell a single lie after swearing with traditional oath.”
That was a heavy acknowledgement from a man of his status ordained by the Vatican City. There was a time when Governor Mutula Kilonzo of Makueni County in Kenya challenged the Members of his Cabinet to swear by traditional oath. They backfired belligerently insisting they should follow the constitution swearing by the Bible. The Kenyan constitution remains silent about traditional oath, although it boasts of upholding African culture. How come?
You are called Musau and Mutiso steals your cow but denies the theft. You take him to course where, of course, he swears by the Bible to tell the court nothing but the truth. If he wins the case against you by whatever means including crafty lying or bribing, and walks out free, where do you go? You can decide to take the traditional way, by referring the matter to KITHITU as your supreme court. Before KITHITU, Mutisi is asked that if he thinks he is not guilty, he should simply swear by KITHITU saying something like, “I Mutiso, if I am the one who stole Musau’s cow, may the power of this KITHITU destroy me.”
After swearing he walks home freely to wait for the destruction if he is guilty. If destruction hits him convincingly, he runs back to Musau and accepts guilt and pays for the consequences. It is a simple and most effective action affordable to anybody. With regard to what really is the KITHITU object, that is another subject for another day.
In 2024 President Ruto destroyed the Jomo Kenyatta Publishing House deliberately in which I am the leading author with 21 titles. I met grievances from desperate authors who lost everything. To reach out President Ruto, early 2024, I used the social media where I expressed my grief and that on behalf of my colleagues requesting for a dialogue. President Ruto went silent for months until 21 March when I published on social media a warning of two months within which, if he did not respond, I would have no other option but to result to Akamba KITHITU. When the warning elapsed, using my constitutional right as a citizen of this country whose constitution has African culture as its pillar, I went to the traditional supreme court and evoked the Akamba KITHITU to President William Ruto specifying that the effect of the KITHITU should manifest itself through assurance that whatever good thing President Ruto touches should, whatever ambitions and aspirations he has, whatever relationship within his government and family might be, all should start falling apart systematically towards destruction until he accepts the mistake and seeks audience and reconciliation with me to avert the growing destruction. Today, President Ruto is still in the woods hoping to overcome the disaster, either through church prayers or whatever means. The disaster is written on the walls in capital letters regarding the historic national ridicules he is being subjected to as everything continues falling apart. The worst is yet to strike. There were people who argued that being the President gives him immunity. Oh yeah? Let us wait and see. This is Africa where ancestral spirits are in charge.
By David G Maillu