Maina Njenga, head of the Kikuyu militia outfit Mungiki today escaped what is a possible assassination attempt along Nairobi-Nyahururu highway. Njenga is fighting for his life at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nyahururu town.
Four people he was travelling with in the same car were however shot dead.
The assailants escaped and are yet to be apprehended by the police.
Njenga’s organization is being accused by the ICC Chief Prosecutor as being used by then PNU under current President Uhuru command to unleash terror on other communities in several parts of the country.
In February last year, ICC Prosecutor Fatou Bensouda revealed that a key Mungiki insider, believed to be Njenga himself, withdrew his testimony at the ICC which led to the termination of Francis Muthaura case in 2012 and substantial weakening of President Uhuru Kenyatta case.
In a recent study by political scientist Mutahi Ngunyi, the Mungiki is seen by majority members of the Kikuyu community as a protector of the Kikuyu ethnic interests and are often, during general elections, rented by the political establishment. More shocking from the study is that after 2007, the Mungiki has regrouped more than ever, assisted, in part, by the ‘acceptance’ of the community, especially the Kikuyu diaspora in the Rift Valley, as an important component of their survival in a still volatile region.
Here is a synopsis of Mutahi Ngunyi’s study:Â