Puzzle of colonial-era holes inside Mt Kenya

Residents of Kagochi village near some of the deep holes at the edge of Mt Kenya Forest in Mathira, Nyeri. [Kibata Kihu, Standard]

Residents of Kagochi area in Mathira are seeking the Government’s help to fill in 20 mysterious deep holes inside Mt Kenya Forest.

The holes, which border the forest and the Nyayo Tea Zone, are said to have been dug more than 60 years ago during the colonial period.

Residents said they had long been puzzled by the depth of the holes, how long they had existed, and the motive of digging them in separate locations.

Sixteen of the holes are situated in two rows at the border of the forest while the other four are about 100 metres away, inside the tea plantation.

They are about one kilometre from Karatina University’s main campus.

Residents said the holes had been dug inside the forest before the establishment of the extensive tea plantation.

Half a century later, different theories abound to explain the motives behind digging of the holes.

Michael Muyu is among the elders who are convinced the holes were dug during the colonial period to be used as “graves” for those opposed to British rule.

Mr Muyu, 99, argues that a number of people who died fighting for Kenya’s freedom could have been dumped in the holes.

Muyu claims he was a member of Mau Mau and believes his colleagues who disappeared from the villages without trace are lying in the “graves”.

He says his wife was among those who disappeared inside the forest, which was favourite hideout for the Mau Mau fighters.

Mau Mau fighter

“I am convinced my wife could be lying in one of those pits. She disappeared after I escaped to Nairobi. I was being hunted down because Mau Mau fighters often took oaths at my home. I never heard about her whereabouts when I returned home. She has never been found,” he said, adding that many people disappeared from the area without a trace.

Muyu also talked about his experience when he worked at a tea factory owned by the British.

“The factory is not far from those pits. We used to hear people screaming from that place, but we could not go near because they were inside the forest and we feared what was happening at the time.”

When asked why they never filled the holes, Muyu said: “How could we fill them and that is where our people could have been dumped?”

Esther Wanjiku, another resident who put her age in the 90s, gave a different account on the existence of the holes.

Wanjiku said they were toilets used by labourers at a camp where “white men” operated several timber businesses. “The workers had been ferried from Embu to work in the timber industry. They later left,” she said.

But it is not clear why they were dug inside the forest and left exposed after the workers’ departure.

The holes are said to have been more than 100 feet deep before soil and other materials partly filled them up.

Robert Wanjohi, 54, said he had known about the pits since he was 14.

“I used to herd cattle in the forest with my grandfather and he always warned me not to graze our cows near the holes,” he said.

Wanjohi said the holes had claimed many livestock, adding that it was impossible to rescue the animals when they fell inside.

Labourers employed to pluck tea and women fetching firewood inside the forest have to watch where they walk to avoid accidents.

“We must be watchful when children accompany us to work because they might fall into the pits and die. We want them filled up,” said Martha Wairimu, adding that it was not easy for visitors to spot the holes because they were overgrown with grass.

Nyamu Kangeri said they had met with local administrators over the holes but no action had been taken.

“Our worry is that if criminals find out that such holes exist, they might kill people and dump them here at night. They are dark and it is almost impossible to know if a person is dumped here,” he said.

County Commissioner David Kipkemei said he was not aware of the holes’ existence.

“I have never heard about them. I will personally go there before I give any information on their status,” he said.