The first ever Meru female politician and the first female MP as well, vividly recalled how she walked from the house of ‘honorable members’ to prison during the punitive KANU Regime.
Annrita Karimi entered the murky waters of politics in the run-up to the 1974 General Election with little experience but a willing heart and a burning desire to lead the people of the then Meru Central constituency.
The fact that no woman had accomplished what she desired did not deter her from pursuing her dream.
The first-time politician had every reason not to run for the then-male-dominated affair, but she braved all manner of intimidation, gave it a shot, and lost to the then-experienced politician – Kabeere M’Mbijiwe, but the tables would eventually turn in her favor.
Karimi resigned in 1975 to run in the 1975 by-election after M’Mbijiwe’s victory was overturned.
She won the by-election by a landslide, defeating powerful men in patriarchal Meru politics, and becoming the Meru region’s first female MP.
But her victory and happiness were fleeting, and a dark period in her life began
Karimi was accused in 1978 of allegedly embezzling money while she was the headmistress of St. Mary’s Secondary School in 1972, a turn of events that have haunted her political life ever since.
A Meru Magistrate court found her guilty near the end of 1978 and sentenced her to two years in prison, causing her to lose her parliamentary seat.
Her subsequent appeal at the Nairobi High Court was dismissed.
The Appellate Court upheld the High Court decision, exacerbating her predicament.
For more than four decades, the judgment has been criticized on numerous legal platforms throughout the country.
Many have called it a “travesty of justice” that sought to serve the oppressive KANU regime at the time.
Karimi recently advised Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza, who survived an impeachment threat from the county’s MCAs in the Senate.
“That is what politicians did to me and I ask my sister to be careful when dealing with them. I admire her for the work she is doing in the community and she should soldier on,” Karimi advised Kawira.
” However, I advise her to avoid confrontation and to approach issues with caution. She should avoid provoking other leaders because they will respond,” she added.
