For those who were around 39yrs ago, and old enough to comprehend what was happening, you remember well on 1/8/1982 a Sunday like today in Kenya, we had an attempted coup.
I was in Isili listening to Lenard Mambo mbotela show on V.O.K radio and suddenly the radio went silent…then almost immediately the husky voice of Lenard followed “wasikilizaji serikali kwa Sasa iko chini ya mkononi mwa wanajeshi”.
We thought it’s a drill of some sort and some few minutes later a loud bang was heard from the nearby barracks. Flight jets crisscrossed the sky from different directions.
Later in the day after Moi stabilized the country, The military literally manned the streets.civilians were required to kneel down and raise both arms.one hand holding identification card.
For the fans of rhumba, Tabu ley song “maze” played the whole day on VOK.
Wengi wenyu mlikua hamjazaliwa but I understand @ChifuMbitika was doing his masters in New York
I recall very well my brother. I was in the USA as you just said but we received breaking news on VOA insinuating that there was a failed coup d etat but the then president has managed to quell it through his loyal army commanders. I called my family back in Nyeri and they assured me that everything was okay but the capital city was under some sort of curfew.
One of the most pathetic and ill planned coup attempts in the history of coup d’etat’s. You didnt have to be around to understand ochuka was a grade A Moron
I recall a hilarious story involving a man from my village. He was in Nairobi when the coup happened. Grapevine has it that he was strolling the streets of the capital some hours after the coup had been quelled. The streets were virtually empty since most people feared to go outside. He was passing through some bank then around OTC when he noticed a gunia with what looked like just rubbish in it. He got curious and went to check what was inside it. To his shock and disbelief he found notes arranged inside. Thousands of shillings. He didn’t even go back to his house. He just boarded the next vehicle to Nyeri and never returned to Nairobi. He built a nice house in his rural farm and started a posho mill business and a shop and also bought a vehicle. Unluckily, he later lost an arm in unexplainable circumstances. He must be in his eighties today.
Chief mbitika is having family crisis even his posts here show a depressed man:D I never understand why you have to praise him always here, it’s like chokosh @cortedivoire assisting chokosh @digi in anything and they are one and same handle
Ive read about it and heard witness accounts from some geezers.
My opinion is the country was boiling underneath…the govt had gone overboard with the assasinations, betrayals and backstabbings, widespread poverty and inequality, lacking service delivery, succesion intrigues, ukoloni mlango nyuma…the tention was there kina ochuka were hoping to spark something and let it snowball.
I mean what was the strategy take on govt friendly forces on one side and thats it and maybe leverage the simmering tribal tension and install a jaduong?
Did some guys chicken out at the final hour?
Too many unanswered questions.
Na muwache ku derail thread za nguvu.
Najua generation ya kina @Jimit iliskia jina curfew juzi vile Corona ilianza, that was my 1st day kuona curfew, na unajua curfew ya moi haikua kamaa hi ya Uhuru yenye bado mnapiga story na polisi kwa barabara…iyo ilikua ya jeshi
Blame it on Raila. Hapo ndio Kenya ilianza kuoza since Moi from that point only surrounded himself with yes men from his community. They went on to royally fuck Kenya for another 20 years.
This event must have really shook the wananchi na Moi 's response was anything but gentle. Alianza sasa wholesale arrests and detentions hadi za lecturers UoN na kulikua na secret police kila mahali. Killed a lot of people too, remember that massacre in Garissa was in 1984 l guess and a lot more never leaked out coz he controlled information like the getsapo and was a western ally. I gathered all these anecdotes early 90s from the way my mum a civil servant, used to talk about “chepkeres” or karnet in hushed tones even while in the house! We used to think moi was God straight up. Alikua dictator anapenda hero worship design ya Stalin. He was lucky Kenyans were still shagzmodos ingekua sahi na hii internet generation wajuaji hangetoboa na hizo 1984 tactics zake
Ochuka escaped to Tanzania, but he was later arrested and tried in Kenya. Some of you might not be aware that Moses Wetangula represented ochuka in the martial court in langata barracks…