Today, as I sit at this genteel joint on Ngong Road, opposite Kenya Science Campus of the University of Nairobi; I have decided to re-visit and spruce up these words I wove during the ill-fated season of Covid-19 pandemic. In retrospect, there was a good day we drove to Kapkatet Campus, which is the School of Medicine for Kabianga University in Kericho County. We were in that cistern of knowledge to inspire university students. Bishop Elisha Odero, Pastor Gilax Ngoya, and I, Ochieng’: arrived there after twilight, spoke there at night, and left before mid-night. We spent time there teaching and preaching to the Christian community who were doctors in the making. Bishop Elisha Mustard Christian Centre (MCC) based in Kisii Town, was the keynote speaker. Whereas, Ngoya and I, were just joting’ ndai, armour-bearers.
While on our way back, from the glorious Kapkatet Campus heading to Kisii Town, we had a candid conversation in the cosy car. Before going full-throttle into full time ministry, Bishop Elisha Odero was a high school teacher. Earlier, he studied English language and Literature at Moi University in Eldoret. This was at the sunset of 80s and by extension, sunrise of 90s. No wonder, he chose to narrate to us what used to happen in universities during those good old days.
The clever church cleric with wit and humour had a riveting rehash of those radiant distant days. He tickled us to the core in the car as we cruised it at a neck-breaking speed to arrive in our destination before the awful curfew hours. Being that the sage said that if you want to know the road, you ask those who are coming back, ours was to listen aptly, and to contribute once in a while as Bishop Elisha gave us a back-to-back account of what happened in universities.
Venerable scholars convened meeting of minds in various universities, which we all acknowledge, are the citadels of knowledge. They did it in form of powerful public lectures and debates, which acted as the icing on the cake of what varsity students learnt in the formal lecture rooms. Once in a while, eye-opening public lectures were delivered with might and main by bold men of God such as Kipsang’ Muge, David Gitari, Henry Okullu, Timothy Njoya, and many more who had mastered the art of speaking truth to power. In actual sense, the lovely lectures awakened people’s collective conscience on pertinent matters like divinity, unity, cohesion, religion and governance. People who sat in such conferences miss those moments the way carnivores miss meat.
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The nub of such public presentations were the heated debates, attended by scholars of great weight. Such debates acted as colourful confluences of scholars of great repute like Professors: Ali Mazrui, B. A. Ogot, Ngugi wa Thiong’o, W.R. Ochieng’, and other polymaths. Over and above, the debates were intense and interesting in nature because they were perfect epitomes of battle of best brains and didactic duels of deep thinkers. The discussants oozed with winsome wisdom, as debaters displayed their gifts of the gab. At the peak of it all, those who attended the deep discussions and debates, had the privilege and pleasure to learn profundity of language, culture, literature, or orature. Their ribs were also cracked by hilarious signatures of the intelligentsia in-attendance.
William Robert Ochieng’, the gentle giant in the sphere of history called himself tipo njugu, loosely translated in lep Luo as the shadow of a groundnut plant. By this, dear reader, the late erudite meant that you could not hide behind him. He was an intellectual colossus, who discernibly stood out in matters scholarship. His signature later changed to tong’ wang’ nyang’, the crocodile’s eye-ball. With this, he portrayed himself as a bold professor. Not a spineless coward of some sort. No wonder, we put on a pedestal and lionise the bold professors of those good old days, because they were tough like nails, and outstanding on how they approached societal issues of public interest.
On battle of wits, in one of the debates, Professor Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o in some sort of acerbic attack coiled around his pet subject of Decolonising the Mind, claiming that Professor Ochieng’ used the appellations ‘William’ and ‘Robert’ because his mortal mind was still colonised. Neo-colonialism at its best. According to Ngũgĩ, decolonisation meant that Ochieng’ was to drop the English nomenclature. My namesake Ochieng’ responded to Ngũgĩ that he used the two foreign monikers because he paid two shillings to have them. He challenged Ngũgĩ who also used the foreign language, English, to think, philosophise and write right. In case he was serious and sincere in his proposition, he could have stuck like a tick on an African language. Of course, the audience broke into loud gales of laughter. Why? Because Ochieng’ dealt Ngũgĩ a big blow. He wrestled him down using language and lofty logic.
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Those who attended the educative debates left feeling enlightened. Most of the professors who stole the show were great writers and orators; they articulated themselves with fine forms of flair and flamboyance. Grace and elegance punctuated their words of wisdom. They employed various features of style as they spoke in the hallowed halls filled to the brim by sea of students. Literary styles like satire, sarcasm, symbolism, synecdoche, analogy, allusion, irony and humour spiced their impeccable presentations. Satire and humour made them tell the truth laughingly. Through the two techniques, they also created great rapport with the audience. Lending credence to these words: Humour is the shortest distance between people. That, therefore, dwarfed distance between them and the reticent students who attended such ilk of lectures to drink from their pots of wit and wisdom.
Therefore, at the conclusion of this essay, allow me say, we need a come back of such marvellous moments. Universities and colleges should host such educative discussions. More public lectures and heated debates revolving around important topics should be frequent like copious cups of coffee in these corridors of knowledge. With this tremendous trend, fountains of knowledge will churn out graduates who are both competent and confident.
By Victor Ochieng’
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