Did you know that it is only in Njoro, a place known as Ndepo, that you will stumble on a drunkard and when you ask him his name, he tells you " I am mama Wangui…"
Yes, no pun intended. This is a reality in Njoro where there is a type of illicit brew that has caused memory lapses among those who take it quite often.
I toured the area during mid-morning hours on Thursday in effort to try and unravel the mystery shrouded in illicit brew dens hoping I would get a name of those behind the trade from frequent customers.
But I got more than just a name after I stumbled upon two men who were only men by appearance.
Intellectually, I would say they are dead and need psychiatric help.
I asked one of them what his name was since he refused to disclose the name of whoever sells him the illicit drink, and his response was in Kikuyu dialect saying, “njitagwo nyina wa wangui” (my name is mama Wangui).
His colleague treated me to a different surprise after he told me that he is a “real” man because he has 12 children like the disciples of Jesus, and they do not go to school, which makes him stand out as a man.
For a moment, I sympathised with their wives because they have a huge burden of taking care of their families since the heads of the families corrupted themselves with illicit drinks that have slowed down their thinking.
Bottom line, let us join hands and end the suffering of many families which have been affected by alcoholism.
Let nothing hinder this war. Men should give their masculine names, not their wives.