Anyone who wants to engage teachers in Mwisho wa Lami and its environs — the greater Western region and indeed the country —knows how important it would have been to engage me personally.
Because I am the best-dressed teacher this side of the Sahara, the most travelled teacher in Mwisho wa Lami and beyond, and the only teacher to have done a real wedding in the greater Mwisho wa Lami region. Plus, I am respected, handsome, celebrated, adored and even feared by many.
People come to me for counsel, to tell me stories, borrow money and to admire my house. That is why every election year, I am one of the most sought-after people in Mwisho wa Lami and its environs. From prospective candidates for MCA positions to contestants for MP, all these people know that my word is important in Mwisho wa Lami.
At the same time, the IEBC is always looking for me. They appreciate that, among other things, I have deep electoral and voting knowledge as well as expertise. So, usually, after campaigns and supporting a candidate of my choice, I join the IEBC as an election official to oversee the elections.
I am not saying that I use my position to influence results in any unlawful way, but I must add that my candidates have never lost — at least not in the polling stations I preside over. My influence goes beyond elections: even churches come to me sometimes.
You may know this, but Apostle Elkana, the revered spiritual superintendent of The Holiest of All Ghosts Tabernacle (THOAG) Assembly Shrine, Rev Awinja, the local ACK church’s Padre, and evangelist Peter Juma of The Church of God consider me a member of their church.
Parents of children getting married always invite me to support dowry negotiations based on my knowledge. And because of my great speaking skills, I am also the one relied on to MC events – from funerals to weddings.
So, when someone started planning a teachers’ visit to State House, I was among the first people to be considered to represent Mwisho wa Lami and its environs. The first person to call me was a KNUT official whom I had campaigned for. He asked what I was doing on Saturday, September 13, and I told him I was available.
“Jipange, we are going to State House!” I could not believe my ears. When I asked what the plan was, he told me to be patient, saying that I would be called in due course. I was also called by another HM who told me he was part of the trip and was really excited. I had never been to State House, and because this would be my first time, I considered it show time — I was really going to make a lasting impression. So I ‘measured’ a new Kaunda suit: green, polyester, short-sleeved, four-pocketed, tight but not too tight.
We had been talking with the KNUT official regularly, as he gave me information on the preparations being done and how teachers would be ferried to State House. But a day after I picked the brand-new uniform, he stopped picking my calls and did not answer my SMS.
After several frantic weeks, he called me back and informed me that due to unavoidable circumstances, the trip to State House had been postponed. Even when I later heard from other sources that the trip to State House was still on, he insisted it had been postponed. “I was the one who called you to inform you, and I am the one who is telling you it was cancelled,” he said.
“Kwani hatuendi Nairobi a week?” another teacher friend of mine called me the other Friday night. “Uko kwa basi gani? ” he asked. He was surprised when I told him that I had been informed the trip had been cancelled. I tried to call my person at TSC to ask what had happened, but he never picked up my calls. I was shocked.
On Saturday, it was sad to watch other teachers at State House without me. I was feeling bad because I really wanted to be there. Teachers had many problems that needed to be articulated to the President, and I am not sure there was any other person more capable of this than me. And that explained why the presentations that were made were very weak and ineffective.
The first was that this was a KNUT-organised event and HOIs (Heads of Institutions) were not needed — that is why many HOIs were dropped from the lists. I countered that by mentioning the number of HOIs I know who went. The second reason was about Saphire.
Someone mentioned that because of my involvement in the sacking of Saphire, I was seen as anti-teachers and would be a burden to other teachers. I did not believe this, for the matter of Saphire’s sacking had been under wraps and only became known a few days before the trip, yet apparently I had been removed long before this.
Yes, I was ready and willing to explain why Saphire had to pack and go home. Even to the president.
Later, I learnt that the person who had really influenced my name being dropped was our local MCA. Many people do not know about this, but in 2022, ahead of the elections, I planned to resign and contest for the MCA position. Though I did not have the money, I was so sure the people would vote for me given how much I am loved.
But because I didn’t read the regulations well, I was time-barred from resigning and therefore decided to throw my weight behind the current MCA, who won majorly because of me. He needed no calculator to know that he was merely warming the seat for me until 2027. With that realisation, he started fighting me.
I have since learned that he is the one who influenced my name to be dropped from the trip to State House. He has also been actively spreading the news about Saphire’s sacking, adding that I was so anti-teachers. I decided not to confront him, tutakuna debe in 2027!
Without me, you may have seen how disorganised teachers were: weak, unclear requests and unrealistic promises made. Some people may have celebrated that I wasn’t part of the trip, but because of my absence, you can take it to the bank: none of the promises made to teachers will be met. None of them.
