Pupils in class during a lesson. [File, Standard] It’s been “back to school” preoccupation since last week, but back to school to study what? Imbibe which values? Acquire knowledge that serves whose interest? Learn to align with which historical thread? These Ngugi Wa Thiong’o-like questions have been crossing my mind from the time I visited the Mbale Islamic University Department of Political Science in Uganda -last week. I was seeking the assistance of the department to enable me locate where the remains of Field Marshal John Okello were buried and where his family is located. “I have never heard of…
Author: By Wafula Buke
President William Ruto during the inspection of the ongoping rehabilitation of Nairobi River on July 18, 2025. [PCS] We have come from far. You couldn’t imagine the death of a president in Jomo Kenyatta’s time (in the 70s0. Today, youthful Kenyans summon the courage of not only imagining but placing the president’s image in a coffin, looking pretty dead. In reality, the death of a president is not just imagined, but is a matter that always has budgets attached to it – plans and strategies with personnel and equipment put in place to pre-empt its possibility. That goes beyond a…
President William Ruto during the inspection of the ongoping rehabilitation of Nairobi River on July 18, 2025. [PCS] We have come from far. You couldn’t imagine the death of a president in Jomo Kenyatta’s time (in the 70s0. Today, youthful Kenyans summon the courage of not only imagining but placing the president’s image in a coffin, looking pretty dead. In reality, the death of a president is not just imagined, but is a matter that always has budgets attached to it – plans and strategies with personnel and equipment put in place to pre-empt its possibility. That goes beyond a…
Former Central African Republic President Jean Bokassa salutes dancers on arrival in Kampala, Uganda, on December 18, 1967. [File, Standard] While enjoying a walk in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1998, I decided to look for a chat with any fellow black man I would meet in the heartland of the white man’s country. /* Container styling */ .fade-out-overlay { position: absolute; top: -80px; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 60px; z-index: 1; background: linear-gradient(to bottom, rgba(255, 255, 255, 0), rgba(255, 255, 255, 1)); } .paywall-container { position: relative; max-width: 100%; margin: 0 auto; padding: 25px; border: 1px solid #e0e0e0; border-radius: 8px; box-shadow:…
Former Central African Republic President Jean Bokassa salutes dancers on arrival in Kampala, Uganda, on December 18, 1967. [File, Standard] While enjoying a walk in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1998, I decided to look for a chat with any fellow black man I would meet in the heartland of the white man’s country. /* Container styling */ .fade-out-overlay { position: absolute; top: -80px; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 60px; z-index: 1; background: linear-gradient(to bottom, rgba(255, 255, 255, 0), rgba(255, 255, 255, 1)); } .paywall-container { position: relative; max-width: 100%; margin: 0 auto; padding: 25px; border: 1px solid #e0e0e0; border-radius: 8px; box-shadow:…
Former Central African Republic President Jean Bokassa salutes dancers on arrival in Kampala, Uganda, on December 18, 1967. [File, Standard] While enjoying a walk in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1998, I decided to look for a chat with any fellow black man I would meet in the heartland of the white man’s country. /* Container styling */ .fade-out-overlay { position: absolute; top: -80px; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 60px; z-index: 1; background: linear-gradient(to bottom, rgba(255, 255, 255, 0), rgba(255, 255, 255, 1)); } .paywall-container { position: relative; max-width: 100%; margin: 0 auto; padding: 25px; border: 1px solid #e0e0e0; border-radius: 8px; box-shadow:…
Late Prof Ngugi wa Thiong’o. [Courtesy] Prof Ngugi wa Thiong’o’s cremation wish is not just personal—it’s political. Like Wangarĩ Maathai, Matiba, and others before him, his final act is a protest against a nation that betrayed its ideals and heroes. In death, they chose to disappear, leaving Kenya to reckon with its silence. Their vanished graves mark not absence, but indictment. Even in cremation, they burn with defiance. So, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o is not coming home. Not because of financial constraints or religious conviction, but because of personal resolve expressed in his will. This could fall under a subject I…
Author professor Ngugi wa Thiong’o during an interview with the standard on 7/2/19. [Beverlyne Musili,Standard] A few months ago, Late Comrade Karemi Nduthu’s brother, also called Nduthu, based in the US where Ngugi has lived since he left Kenya, requested me to pen a few words in appreciation of Prof Ngugi wa Thiong’o and his contribution to society. Nduthu was a member of the team of Kenyans abroad who may have known that the senior citizen may not recover from the ailment that troubled him. .fade-out-overlay{position:absolute;top:-80px;left:0;width:100%;height:60px;z-index:1;background:linear-gradient(to bottom,rgba(255,255,255,0),rgba(255,255,255,1))}.paywall-container{position:relative;max-width:100%;margin:0 auto;padding:25px;border:1px solid #e0e0e0;border-radius:8px;box-shadow:0 2px 10px rgba(0,0,0,.1);background-color:#fff}.paywall-container h2{text-align:center}.paywall-container a{text-decoration:none!important}.paywall-header{font-size:24px;font-weight:bold;margin-bottom:15px;color:#333;text-align:center}.price-highlight{font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;color:#d40511;margin:15px 0;text-align:center}.price-highlight .original-price{text-decoration:line-through;color:#777;margin-right:0}.divider{border-top:1px solid #e0e0e0;margin:20px 0}.subscribe-button{display:block;width:100%;padding:12px;background-color:#d40511;color:#fff;border:none;border-radius:4px;font-size:25px;font-weight:bold;cursor:pointer;margin-bottom:20px;transition:background-color…
Former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua during the unveiling of of his new party, Democracy for Citizens Party (DCP) in Nairobi, on May 15, 2025. [Collins Oduor, Standard] Kenya’s political stage continues to attract dramatic players from what might be described as ‘strange political planets’. In 1992, the Kanu government supplied the opposition with quite a number causing confusion but culminated into political formations that in the long run took power and instituted reforms. .fade-out-overlay{position:absolute;top:-80px;left:0;width:100%;height:60px;z-index:1;background:linear-gradient(to bottom,rgba(255,255,255,0),rgba(255,255,255,1))}.paywall-container{position:relative;max-width:100%;margin:0 auto;padding:25px;border:1px solid #e0e0e0;border-radius:8px;box-shadow:0 2px 10px rgba(0,0,0,.1);background-color:#fff}.paywall-container h2{text-align:center}.paywall-container a{text-decoration:none!important}.paywall-header{font-size:24px;font-weight:bold;margin-bottom:15px;color:#333;text-align:center}.price-highlight{font-size:20px;font-weight:bold;color:#d40511;margin:15px 0;text-align:center}.price-highlight .original-price{text-decoration:line-through;color:#777;margin-right:0}.divider{border-top:1px solid #e0e0e0;margin:20px 0}.subscribe-button{display:block;width:100%;padding:12px;background-color:#d40511;color:#fff;border:none;border-radius:4px;font-size:25px;font-weight:bold;cursor:pointer;margin-bottom:20px;transition:background-color .3s;text-decoration:none}.subscribe-button:hover{background-color:#b0030e;text-decoration:none}.features-list{margin:20px 0;padding-left:20px;list-style:none}.features-list li{margin-bottom:10px;list-style-type:none;position:relative;padding-left:25px;list-style-type:none!important}.features-list li:before{content:”✓”;color:#d40511;position:absolute;left:0;font-weight:bold}.existing-subscriber{text-align:center;color:#555;font-size:14px}.existing-subscriber a{color:#d40511;text-decoration:none}.existing-subscriber a:hover{text-decoration:underline} Get Trusted News for Only Ksh99…