Ngugi books show independence didn’t bring freedom

It is always refreshing to attend a function that is simultaneously fun, educative, thought-provoking, inspiring and relaxing. Last week, the US Library of Congress in Washington DC hosted “Jioni na Ngugi wa Thiong’o”, finally succeeding in getting him there after trying for 10 years. I happened to be in DC and I simply could not miss this! For it is rare that Africans are publicly honored and celebrated in the US. And this was about Ngugi, whose books and exploits, shaped my thinking and orientation in my formative years.

I was still in shorts when Ngugi made headline news for writing, staging and producing the play “Ngaahika Ndeenda” (I will marry when I want) working with ordinary villagers and peasants in Kamirithu, Limuru. The fact that the entire cast was ordinary villagers was spectacular, and even more so when the Jomo Kenyatta regime subsequently banned the play and detained Ngugi and his co-writer Ngugi wa Mirie, without trial.