By Bonface Mulyungi

Githunguri MP Gathoni Wamuchomba has stated that she does not fear the curses pronounced by a section of Kiama Kia Ma elders who smashed traditional calabashes in protest over the hiving off of the 58-acre Githunguri Kia Wairera shrine land for the affordable housing project. 

The tense Thursday incident unfolded in Githunguri town after police dispersed the elders’ prayer gathering with teargas and batons, a move that angered the group and pushed them to turn to traditional rites to express their discontent over the contested land.

In Kikuyu custom, the breaking of the traditional pots symbolizes the crushing of an undertaking and carries the weight of an irreversible curse unless special cleansing rituals are later performed.

In this case, the act was widely seen as a symbolic rejection of the affordable housing project planned on the culturally significant land.

Speaking at Marige village during an inspection tour of ongoing hostel construction for Githunguri Technical students, Wamuchomba dismissed the curses as meaningless, insisting that her Christian faith does not allow her to subscribe to Kikuyu traditional beliefs.

“Mnalaani nani? Hao ndo wamelaaniwa kwa sababu wanafanya maneno ambayo si ya watu wa dini ya Githunguri. Sisi hatuamini mambo hayo,” she stated. 

She maintained that despite the protests and concerns raised by the elders, nothing will stop the ongoing construction of affordable houses, which she said will transform the area through job creation, decent housing and expanded economic opportunities.

The MP further insisted that the recognised local Kiama Kia Ma leadership had already approved the project and claimed the elders protesting at the site were strangers allegedly ferried from different parts of the country, including Mombasa, Kayole and Thika.

She linked the resistance to individuals with interests in the prime parcel, saying the opposition was being fueled by suspected land grabbers keen on frustrating the housing plan for their own benefit.