mzeiya
Elder Lister
As cabinet minister Tom Mboya strode out of Chhani’s Pharmacy along Victoria Street, Nairobi, on the early afternoon of 5th July 1969, the bustling din of Victoria Street was suddenly interrupted by the sound of gunshots.
Seconds later, the politician lay unconscious, bleeding profusely from his chest. The assassin, who later turned out to be a Mûgîkûyû, Nahashon Isaac Njenga, quickly disappeared amidst the confusion, having pumped two bullets into Mboya’s chest.
Ironically, Mboya had a few years back been involved in assisting his killer proceed for military training in Bulgaria as part of the post-independence youth overseas training airlifts.
Many agree that Mboya’s assassination marked the lowest moments of Mzee Kenyatta’s government.
But if you thought the assassination was enough drama, well, the funeral ceremony itself was characterized by more drama.
For instance, Tom's widow, Pamela Mboya, was herself momentarily admitted in hospital while the funeral procession made its way to the burial.
Her car had rammed into a police car providing escort services for the two-mile cortège.
A matron at the Nakuru War Memorial Hospital, where Pamela was admitted, said she was given a mild sedative, a cup of tea and x-rayed for knee injuries before the procession resumed its journey.
The accident happened merely 24 miles out of Nairobi, around Limuru. It was on its way to Homa Bay, from where a boat ferried Tom Mboya's body to Rusinga island.
A car in the procession carrying an MP, Mgeyo Onyango, also crashed into a police car and yet another motorist crashed into the wreck.
Mrs. Mboya was travelling in the same car as her brother in law, Alphonce Akuku, and his wife. All three were treated for shock and Akuku had X-rays of his neck taken.
Security officials had whisked Mboya's body out of Holy Family Basilica and towards Homa Bay to prevent an outbreak of tribal violence between the two most populous communities then - the Luo and the Agïküyü.
By the time the cortège reached Nyanza, there were an estimated 100,000 mourners to receive it. They swarmed between and around it and, at some point, hurled stones towards a section of the procession that was believed to comprise members of the Agïküyü community, Mzee Kenyatta included.
Indeed, Kenyatta's motorcade bore several instances of stoning.
This is the mausoleum on Rusinga Island in which the remains of the late Tom Mboya lie
cc @Internet @Aviator
Courtesy: @HistoryKE
Seconds later, the politician lay unconscious, bleeding profusely from his chest. The assassin, who later turned out to be a Mûgîkûyû, Nahashon Isaac Njenga, quickly disappeared amidst the confusion, having pumped two bullets into Mboya’s chest.
Ironically, Mboya had a few years back been involved in assisting his killer proceed for military training in Bulgaria as part of the post-independence youth overseas training airlifts.
Many agree that Mboya’s assassination marked the lowest moments of Mzee Kenyatta’s government.
But if you thought the assassination was enough drama, well, the funeral ceremony itself was characterized by more drama.
For instance, Tom's widow, Pamela Mboya, was herself momentarily admitted in hospital while the funeral procession made its way to the burial.
Her car had rammed into a police car providing escort services for the two-mile cortège.
A matron at the Nakuru War Memorial Hospital, where Pamela was admitted, said she was given a mild sedative, a cup of tea and x-rayed for knee injuries before the procession resumed its journey.
The accident happened merely 24 miles out of Nairobi, around Limuru. It was on its way to Homa Bay, from where a boat ferried Tom Mboya's body to Rusinga island.
A car in the procession carrying an MP, Mgeyo Onyango, also crashed into a police car and yet another motorist crashed into the wreck.
Mrs. Mboya was travelling in the same car as her brother in law, Alphonce Akuku, and his wife. All three were treated for shock and Akuku had X-rays of his neck taken.
Security officials had whisked Mboya's body out of Holy Family Basilica and towards Homa Bay to prevent an outbreak of tribal violence between the two most populous communities then - the Luo and the Agïküyü.
By the time the cortège reached Nyanza, there were an estimated 100,000 mourners to receive it. They swarmed between and around it and, at some point, hurled stones towards a section of the procession that was believed to comprise members of the Agïküyü community, Mzee Kenyatta included.
Indeed, Kenyatta's motorcade bore several instances of stoning.
This is the mausoleum on Rusinga Island in which the remains of the late Tom Mboya lie
cc @Internet @Aviator
Courtesy: @HistoryKE
