Muranga residents decry return of Mungiki

Today, Kenyans in some lucky towns will go about their affairs till very late or very early tomorrow morning as towns become more vibrant.

But in the town of Kabati in Murang’a County, most residents say getting to the house before 8pm can be a matter of life and death because after 8pm, gangs take over the town.

In low tones, residents speak of the return of the once dreaded Mungiki sect and other criminal gangs terrorizing different towns in Murang’a County, but no one is ready to speak about issues of security in the glare of cameras.

Once cameras go off and the sun sets in the west, residents boldly tell a story of the terror they are facing from different gangs operating in the area.

This was after stories of residents living in fear recently dominated headlines.

Residents claim to have been at the mercy of gangs in the last one week. They mention Mungiki and 42 brothers as the two criminal gangs running things in the area.

At 9pm, the towns are deserted, everyone has left save for the boda boda operators who are bold enough to operate but even so they tread with caution.

Some of their colleagues have in the recent past fallen into the hands of criminal gangs.

“Every day you wake to stories of muggings and killings,” said one boda boda operator.

The re-emergence of criminal gangs has affected some parts of Kandara and Kiharu constituencies.

In Mukuyu, Murang’a town, residents speak of a group called Gaza.

In 2009, the late Internal Security Cabinet minister John Michuki issued a shoot to kill order that saw police crackdown on the illegal Mungiki group, drastically reducing its prominence and activities.