We The People: Thinking Heavenly Acting Kenyanly

Ngartia Bryan’s current favorite #KeRead is “We The People: Thinking Heavenly Acting Kenyanly” – a memoir by Timothy Njoya.

It explores Njoya’s intellectual side, dwelling on his theory for the transformation of Kenya from a market to a nation and Kenyans from commodity to people, with peeks into his life, a history of Kenyan (mis)governance, the church, and the struggle for a new constitution.
Njoya’s constant quest for a more just society resonated with me. His courage, sometimes even fanatical, resilience and ability to stay rational while his opponents were frothing at the mouth are rare qualities. Even rarer in the Kenyan political and civil justice scene. Most of his resistance started from the pulpit and went out to galvanize an oppressed – almost hopeless – people. That hit a close spot in me, as someone who is constantly on a stage in front of the descendants of the same Kenyans. I was surprised (though this has now become my constant state) at how little we know about, even, our immediate history. I have always known Njoya’s story as a series of beatings served upon him by the police and political militia. This book revealed that those were not random incidents, but the bloodier bits of a long, calculated fight.

The narrative traces back, before Njoya’s birth, to his mother’s world. A precolonial, pre-Kenya society. It then weaves through Njoya’s childhood during the State of Emergency, at the height of Kenya’s fight for independence, we get bits and pieces of his education, religious awakening, earliest forms of rebellion and his life as a renegade preacher in constant conflict with the Kenyatta and Moi regimes. It is not told in that chronological order though, as Njoya prefers to lay out the theory that has guided him through his adult life and career – one of guiding Kenyans to a realization of their own sovereignty. Bits of his life then serve as a background or a consequence of this mission. He does not shy away from mentioning names neither does he pull punches. He calls out everyone, from the former presidents to politicians to his colleagues in the civil society to the church leadership and special branch officers. If you are looking for a grass to glory story, this book is not for you. This one is for those who know there is a deep problem in this country and endeavor to change it. This is for people with heart. People like Njoya.

Ngartia is a storyteller and performer at Too Early For Birds