A BIOGRAPHY OF CHIEF NJAGI KAVUNGURA, MOSES RUTERE KITHINJI

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1 A BIOGRAPHY OF CHIEF NJAGI KAVUNGURA, MOSES RUTERE KITHINJI \ A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE BOARD OF POSTGRADUATE STUDIES IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR AWARD OF THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF ARTS IN HISTORY OF EGERTON UNIVERSITY EGERTON UNIVERSITY APRIL 2014

2 DECLARATION AND RECOMMENDATION Declaration This thesis is my original work and has not been submitted to this or another institution for examination. Signature: Date: Name:. KITHINJI, MOSES RUTERE... A25 / 0307 / Recommendation This thesis has been submitted for examination with our recommendation as the University supervisors:- (1) Signature:.. Date: Name:.PROFESSOR H. S. K. MWANIKI.. (2) Signature: Date: Name:.PROFESSOR REUBEN MATHEKA

3 COPYRIGHT This thesis is reserved insofar as all the rights in it are concerned. No one should use or reproduce any of its parts in any way without having obtained written permission of the author or Egerton University. However, obtaining short citations for some critical writings is alright.

4 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I acknowledge the contribution the late Chief Ephantus Njagi wa Kavungura of Ngandori Location in Embu County made towards my endeavours to collect information on his life during my undergraduate days in spite of his failing health. He bore with my hearing impairment as if it was not a problem at all. The information he provided enabled me to write Bachelor of Arts (BA) dissertation titled A Biography of Chief Ephantus Njagi Kavungura of Embu District, Kenya and it formed the backbone of this thesis. For without the revelations he made, the accuracy of this text would be very much in doubt and questionable. I am also grateful to Njagi s family for their support they have been giving me since Njagi died on 18 January They were helpful in many ways, including providing information on Njagi and identification of informants. The many informants who gave information on Njagi in particular and the Embu society in general, are hereby commended for work well done. The information they provided was crucial in portraying the path that the life of Njagi took which made this thesis a reality. I appreciate the in-put of the teaching staff of the Department of History of Egerton University in my scholarly pursuit. To my supervisors, Professor H. S. K. Mwaniki and Professor Reuben Matheka, I say thanks a lot for your patience, confidence in me, and the guidance that drove me to achieve my goal. The others are Dr. Isaac Tarus, Dr. Josiah Osamba, Dr. Dorothy Nyakwaka, Dr. Daniel Kendagor and Dr. Chacha Babere. These played a great role in my success as they, too, had a positive view of what I was doing. Their concern was instrumental in keeping alive my determination to soldier on in spite of the setbacks I face. But I do not forget their colleague, the late Dr. Kipkoech Mosonik arap Korir. Dr. Mosonik was the Chairman of the Department during my undergraduate days and part of the duration of the Master s programme. He prepared me to succeed in the field of historical scholarship. He supervised my afore-mentioned BA dissertation, which I started researching on after the first year of my undergraduate studies. For years, he made time to give me advice and guidance on how I could succeed in historical scholarship. On 9 March 1994 he presented me a memorandum The use of Footnotes and Bibliography in Scholarly Writing which impressed on me the importance of reliance on factual information in the writing of history and showing the source of that information. He stressed that historians do not rumour-monger, they proceed from evidence. I submitted to him my preliminary study on Chief Njagi on 29 June After reading it, he noted that it was fantastic and added that historical biography has tremendous potential in the pursuit of tapping modern history of

5 Kenya. Further, he pointed out my capability to contribute hugely in that regard. He has an imprint in my successful writing of this thesis. I registered for the Master s studies as a self-sponsored student; however, I did not have enough money to cover all the requirements thereof. And along the way, the going got tough as finances got finished. Were it not for the support I received from some people, I could not have made progress. Dr. Esther Keino, Simon Mugo Rutere and the late Agostino Gakono Ngari assisted to get loans from the Higher Education Loans Board by committing themselves as witnesses. Former Member of Parliament for Manyatta Constituency, Honourable (Hon.) Peter Njeru Ndwiga, too, did wonderful work in the quest for the funds. He impressed on the committee of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF) of Manyatta to sponsor my research programme and I benefitted. I had been barred by the District Commissioner of Embu from carrying out research without adequate funds to do the needful conclusively. Furthermore, I had been discontinued by the University because of failure to make progress in my studies due to lack of funds. It was upon receiving the funds towards the end of 2007 that I was able to ready myself to continue (I was in a position to apply for readmission to the Master s programme). I am hugely indebted to who helped me to get funds. I cannot forget the contribution of my research assistant, Renison Muriithi. He boldly met many challenges so as to see the research programme completed. Among other things, he covered so many kilometres on foot, up the ridges and down the valleys, sometimes in wet conditions, in search of informants and successfully getting information from them. My course mate in the graduate programme, Parcleas Stanislaus Kibet, offered some assistance to me. This happened as I was grappling with a financial crunch during course. Lawrence Ndaba Kariuki (who was member of staff at the University during that period) and his family, too, were greatly positive to me. Moreover, around the same time, my sister, Mary Marigu, lend me money for the programme. What these people did was pivotal in preparing me to reap forward and reach this far. There were some other people who gave a helping hand to me in one way or other in the course of the study programme. Be that as it may, they are not mentioned herein fore. Therefore, I would like them to bear with it; however, knowing that what they did was not in vain. DEDICATION

6 This thesis is dedicated to the memory of: Haron Rutere Kwigirira ( ) and Lilian Wanjoka ( ).

7 QUOTATION Until lions have their own historians, the tale of the hunt will always glorify the hunter. - A Kikuyu proverb

8 LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND ACRONYMS ACK - Anglican Church of Kenya ADC - African District Council AIPCA - African Independent Pentecostal Church of Africa BA - Bachelor of Arts BEAP - British East Africa Protectorate BoG - Board of Governors CAA - Chiefs Authority Act CAO - Chiefs Authority Ordinance CBK - Coffee Board of Kenya CCD - Commissioner for Co-operative Development CCE - County Council of Embu CCM - Consolata Catholic Mission CEE - Common Entrance Examination CHSC - Cambridge Higher School Certificate CMS - Church Mission Society CNFCS - Central Ngandori Farmers Co-operative Society Limited CPK - Church of the Province of Kenya CSC - Cambridge School Certificate CSM - Church of Scotland Mission DC - District Commissioner DCO - District Co-operatives Officer DO - District Officer DoB - Date of Birth DoI - Date of Interview ECCU - Embu Coffee Co-operative Union Limited ECU - Embu Co-operative Union Limited EDALCC - Embu District Advisory Land Consolidation Council EDCU - Embu District Co-operative Union Limited ESU - Embu Social Union FCS - Farmers Co-operative Society GAS - Government African School Hon - Honourable

9 IBEACo - Imperial British East African Company KANU - Kenya African National Union KAPE - Kenya African Preliminary Examination KAU - Kenya African Union KCA - Kikuyu Central Association KSh - Kenya Shilling KKM - Kiama Kia Muingi KKNI - Kiama Kia Nyangi Na Irungu KNA - Kenya National Archives KNCU - Kilimanjaro Native Co-operative Union Limited KPCU - Kenya Planters Co-operative Union Limited KPU - Kenya Peoples Union Legco - Legislative Council LLB - Local Land Board MACU - Meru-Arusha Co-operative Union Limited MMS - Methodist Mission Society MP - Member of Parliament NCGCS - Ngandori Coffee Growers Co-operative Society Limited NLDC - Ngandori Location Development Committee NoI - Name of Informant NSSC - Ngandori Secondary Schools Committee NSSF - Ngandori Secondary Schools Fund PC - Provincial Commissioner PEO - Provincial Education Officer PoB - Place of Birth SAM - Salvation Army Mission SC - School Committee Sh - Shilling

10 ABSTRACT The study of chiefs in the history of Kenya is neglected yet the position has been a cause of contention over its relevance to proper governance of the country in the post-colonial era. Kenya s history has been silent on the life of Chief Njagi Kavungura, his leadership qualities and those other chiefs. Njagi had a productive life in public administration in both the colonial and post-colonial eras of Kenya s history. There was danger; therefore, of data concerning his leadership attributes being lost with time and possible informants dying. In a bid to document his tenure as a provincial administrator, the study attempted to explore his personal attributes. This was done because there was need for information concerning Kenyan chiefs and other administrators. Towards that end, the framework of the Great Man theory informed the study. It argues that history is the work of great men (heroes) because they have progressive aims and beliefs and they lead ordinary people in making them real. So on that premise, in a bid to write history, it would help a lot to write biographies of great men. Njagi was assumed to have done a lot to transform the lives of his people. In the efforts to get information to portray his attributes, the method of study involved collection of data through perusal of primary and secondary sources in archives and libraries. There were also interview schedules. Potential respondents were people who knew him. These included the residents of the location that Njagi administered, those whom had served with him in the Provincial Administration, local government, co-operative movement, management of educational institutions and church. Respondents gave information and told of other prospective respondents. Collection of information was started at Njoro Campus of Egerton University then in Nairobi and finally in Embu and Kirinyaga counties. The study established that Njagi was appointed as a colonial chief because provincial administrators, Christian missionaries and the public saw him as having good leadership qualities. Njagi remained a chief at the time of Kenya s independence as he had proved to be a good leader. He cared for the welfare of his people in both colonial and post-colonial eras of Kenya s history by contributing in the development of the society in areas such as: avoidance of high-handedness, liberation struggle, fighting corruption, modern education, reduction of tax burden, exemption of women from communal work, rehabilitating ex-mau Mau detainees, coffee farming, developing cooperative societies and implementation of the Swynnerton Plan (land reforms). He achieved that because he had values such as integrity, patriotism, diligence and conscientiousness. This study was made because there was much need for information concerning attributes of Kenyan chiefs and other administrators. The information that was realised has helped to fill the academic gap that was extant. Moreover, the study will be an inspiration to other scholars to write biographies of other chiefs and prominent personalities in Kenya before their attributes are lost. It was found out that the bad reputation of the office of chief was due to the duties of chiefs and their character.

11 TABLE OF CONTENTS Declaration and Recommendation ii Copyright iii Acknowledgements iv Dedication vi Quotation vii List of Abbreviations and Acronyms viii Abstract x Table of contents xi CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION Background to the Study Statement of the Problem Objectives of the Study Research Premises Review of related Literature Justification of the Study Theoretical Framework Scope and Limitations of the Study Method of Study CHAPTER TWO NJAGI S EARLY LIFE, , AND THE EMBU SOCIETY IN THE EARLY COLONIAL PERIOD ,, Overview European Imprints Emergence of Njagi s Genealogy Acquiring Education Summary

12 CHAPTER THREE NJAGI S WORK BEFORE AND AFTER BECOMING A COLONIAL CHIEF, Overview Community Service Colonial Local Government Service Colonial Chieftaincy Service Entrepreneurship Summary CHAPTER FOUR NJAGI AS A CHIEF AND RETIREE IN THE INDEPENDENCE PERIOD, Overview Chieftaincy Service and other Government Work Community Service Personal Affairs Summary CHAPTER FIVE CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS Conclusion Recommendations REFERENCES (A) Primary Sources (B) Secondary Sources APPENDICES Appendix I : List of Informants Appendix II : Photographs Appendix III : Chiefs Authority Act Standing Orders by Chief Njagi Kavungura (1982) Appendix IV : Interview Schedules