By Shem Mukalo
Social media and other grapevine circles continue to roil with shocking yet not surprising revelations in the aftermath of hard-hitting twin expose`s by Kenya’s towering investigative journalists,John Allan Namu and the angular yet ruthless Mohamed Ali. The expose`s, masterclasses of enterprise journalism, explored the antics of shameless mortals who peddle lies packaged as divinely-sanctioned messages.
Sticking out was the name of one nincompoop called Kanyari whose enterprising histrionics,from touching the “fundamentals” of female members of his gullible congregation to God knows what and who has become associated with the “Panda mbegu” tagline, has surely sent heaven into the orbit and left a bitter taste in the mouths of many.
The righteous ire that Kenyans of good-sense expended on this soul-dead bloke was understandably vicious and how I wish this clown who thinks evangelism is a circus will rot behind bars or better still take a bullet(s);he should pay for using God’s name in vain and dragging it through mud for selfish ends.
That said,some goofers depraved just like Kanyari,have taken to social media with the worst of intentions;bashing the innocent Betty Bayo for all manner of imagined and concocted wrongs.
Her crime; being the wife of the unsavory ‘pastor’. How dubious? Ethnic propagandists who see her as an opportunity of advancing their narrow stereotypes,misogynists who enjoy deriding women and haters who are jealous of her meteoric rise and her lyrical flawlessness in the music industry have turned her into a punching bag.
So that we are clear,I don’t have any intentions of courting her ,now that a divorce between her and Kanyari is imminent, as some mortals might suspect from my defence of her.I am only disgusted at the vicious attacks directed at her on the tenuous grounds that she supported her husband’s indiscretions.I am not by any means insinuating that she is snow white and indisposed to sin.As a human being she’s surely bound to falter.
The Betty Bayo legend,inspiring as it is incredible,attests to the triumph of the human spirit.Her trajectory to national fame is one infused with tears,blood,poverty and above all hope that, inspite of anything ,the horizon is ever brighter for an optimistic soul.She overcame all obstacles under the sun and in this human sewer called Nairobi,breaking the glass ceiling to become a gospel sensation of colossal renown that defies our terrorists-ridden borders.
Her hits such as “11th hour” and “Siyabonga” have indubitably taken the music industry by storm and morphed her into an indisputable lyrical queen.Seeing her potential and the impact she was having on society,the ‘Tambua Dada’ initiative, aimed at providing reusable sanitary pads to indigent girls ,came calling enlisting her services in a deal worth millions.Her torrid experience as a house-help was now well behind her.
Social media vipers intent on sinking their venomous fangs into this self-made lass should give her a break.Her conscience is clear and she has made statements to that effect.Her marriage ought not to be employed as a basis of complicity.After all she has distanced herself from her man’s stuff.Judging her without hearing her side of the story amounts to a serious violation of the laws of natural justice