DAY BARINGO NORTH PARENTS AND BARMOSIO STORMED A SCHOOL IN MOI’S BACKYARD
The “sweet taste”of traditional brew in Baringo North’s Kabarkebo village almost drove him crazy in the year 1977!He thanks the wise education officials of that day for saving him from the dungeon of alcoholism, a trap that has the potential to ruin not only an individual, but an entire society and even a Nation.
His loving wife always prepared him for school every morning without fail. Wearing a serious looking face to indicate that it’s yet another new day to build the nation, he could briskly walk on a path towards Poi primary school where he was then teaching. Somewhere along the way; there was always this strong temptation for him to stop at the home of some guy called Joseph Ruto at Kapkoiwo, a notorious bootlegger whose legacy in the illegal business remains unrivalled to date. He could nevertheless succumb to this strong temptation to walk into Ruto’s homestead, and be the first one to sample the intoxicating ‘buffet’.
Inside the home of Ruto,all traditional brews were in a steady supply including the killer chang’aa, the retired teacher still reminisces .Every sip that reached his mouth made him grow temporally wrinkles in the face, and he could listen at it as it made a painful journey down his throat, and into his stomach where it released the stings of death. In a drunken stupor, his drinking mates were the ones who often reminded him that he was already late for school.
A wave of shame could hit him hard in the face after confirming that for sure; it was already midday and there was no more use for him to head to school, but to join the many illiterate drunkards singing a Pokot song called ‘’CHOROMWAITA’’ in praise of a Pokot man who once raided a village somewhere within Ng’orora not to steal cattle, but to elope with a black beauty Arror girl, and off they went towards Loyamorok where they settled. The climax of that song is that that Pokot Man later paid several herds of cattle as dowry, and a big ‘’pole’’ for the Arror clan where he took the virgin from.The song is still living in the minds of many Pokot and Arror old men -even to date.
Walking home in shame after every drinking spree reminded him that he missed yet another opportunity to teach his pupils that day. He always comforted himself by loudly shouting ‘’Tomorrow! I say tomorrow! I will be the first person to report to school very early in the morning and without fail.’’ But those were just empty promises because, the cycle continued until he faced the wrath of his then head teacher a Mr.Richard Kipkaren.
Meet Stephen Rutoh,a retired secondary school teacher in Baringo County. In an interview with BFN, he reveals that his TSC number is 87606. On one Thursday in the year 1943, he was born into a family in Kipcherere near Ewalel,Kimondis location. His mother was just a housewife with ten kids, him being first born in that family of ten. His hardworking father was employed as a driver by a Lord Dalamere in Naivasha.
His father valued education and ensured his admission to Kituro primary school in the year 1952 where he graduated from to join a school in Kakamega,but his health did not allow him to continue schooling in that region. He shifted to Menengai High school in Nakuru. The school was first an Asian school, and young Stephen was privileged to be among the first batch of Africans to get admission to the school. Sadly, he dropped out in the year 1967 because his father who had then retired could not afford to pay his school fees anymore.
It is then that he decided to join the Kenya Prisons for training and was posted to Lang’ata. While holding a gun, his soul hungered to have more education. He resigned from the Prisons in the year 1969. As soon as he landed at his sweet home Baringo,he walked to the education offices in Kabarnet and informed the officials about his desire to serve as an untrained teacher. His good academic papers spoke on his behalf and without too much ado, he was asked to report to Nginyang Primary school in East Pokot ;and he refused because of the hostile weather. With no threats of sacking during those days, the officials allowed him to join a school of his choice, Kipsaraman primary school in Baringo North. Among the veteran teachers he encountered in Kipsaraman primary school are the Late Daniel Chesiyna from Kapchepkisa,Francis Soi from Kapsoo in Kabarnet,Ambrose Tarus from Kiboino and the only lady Madam Naomi Chebii from Kipsaraman.The salary was not bad , he was taking home Ksh 160.00 as his monthly pay.
To become a real professional teacher, he enrolled for a Cambridge certificate at Maseno and studied privately while still teaching at Kipsaraman.He passed his Cambridge exams joined Kericho teachers college for his in service training between 1973 and 1977.There were no graduation gowns to be worn those days, Ruto remembers with a chuckle. Nobody from his family or clan joined him for his graduation ceremony at Kericho because back then,it was not about pomp and celebrations as is common today.
A person determined to run away from poverty and enjoy life like that of the white man, for 800 Kenya shillings, this retired teacher bought himself some three acres piece of land at Barkebo in Kipkata Location. It was in the year 1971.His young family settled there at Barkebo and specifically at a village called Kapkoiwo where Ruto formed the cream of the society.Many people came to him to find some pieces of advice.
‘’Being a teacher those days was a great honor and many people addressed me by the title ‘’mwalimu’’Ruto remembers the sweet era that is now history.
Although his stay at Barkebo was very comfortable, Ruto soon discovered that he was not fully integrated into the community because he had some peculiar habit. He was not taking any alcohol and this denied him the chance to socialize and be recognized as a member of the society.
During the long December holidays when boys are initiated into adulthood, traditional beer made from maize and honey was served in plenty to elders of status like him. He felt like a big letdown for not partaking in the drink which to the best of his knowledge is not a poison. It’s a drink which some people even call ‘’porridge for the elders’’, and has existed since time immemorial. He was very wrong. He started drinking little by little and it wasn’t long before he found himself in various drinking dens, jostling for space with many other addicts, including some untidy expectant women! Just wait for a moment, he started missing school and the no non sense education authorities of those days started watching him closely.
His home was no more a place of happiness but ‘a psychological torture chamber’ because when sober, it’s here that he was repeatedly reminded about his failure as a father .He was not any longer providing and his family could sometimes go without food and clothing.
‘’Cursed should be the man who invented alcohol!’’ said the veteran teacher, expressing his anger by digging into the ground using his walking stick.
Mr.Daniel Chesiyna who is now deceased was then the head teacher of Kapchekisa primary school; and having taught with him earlier in Kipsaraman,he took note of his sad situation and was determined to save him from alcoholism. The head teacher of Poi was very tired of him and wanted him out from his school like yesterday. That was in the year 1980. Chesiyna approached the education officials in Kabarnet, requesting that Ruto join his Kapchekisa primary school, and his wish was granted.
At KapChepkisa,his friend Daniel thought Ruto would now recover from alcoholism because there wasn’t any alcohol near his school. He was very wrong. At the new school, drunkards neighboring the school had noted that Ruto was their member, and they came to claim his company. He felt very helpless and could not control himself even with the knowledge that he was walking the path to destruction and a lifetime full of regrets.
Before long, the delegation of drunkards including Ruto could frequently walk all the way to Talai and even Kasisit,some twenty Kilometers away looking for something intoxicating.
‘’Never mind that during those days, heavy fogs would cover the whole regions of Kaptumo and Saimo Hills, and guys without sweaters would brave all that chill in the journey aimed at getting nothing important at all, just to get themselves drunk!’’ Ruto comically relives the crazy things he did with his friends.
In a strange twist of fate; education officials from Kabarnet noted that Ruto was a teacher who required help and not victimization. They transferred him all the way to Kewamoi primary school in Sacho, Baringo Central. It is here that he remained sober most of the time and got a rare opportunity to reflect on the misery he caused himself and his family.
‘’ I realized that alcohol was the reason I was living like a bachelor in my new school and for the first time, I reflected on my sad life. The slightest fantasy I had about alcohol made my mouth to twitch in all directions, I missed it badly!’’ said the teacher while touching his lips, as if to ensure that they are no longer the lips that longed for alcohol.
There wasn’t any drunkard around that school and this worked magic! It was very difficult for him to access alcohol, unless he wanted to take a dawn to dusk journey on foot all the way to Kapkelelwa,a place where Baringo shares boarder with the nearby Elgeiyo Marakwet county. With no alcohol in sight, he gave his all in class and tried to be the best teacher he could be.He was then the only trained teacher at Kewamoi,and was handling English in class seven.
His lessons in composition writing involved practical lessons. There was a fire incident near the school one time, and he send out the whole class to go to the homestead and investigate, find details about the fire and then write a composition about what had transpired. It was a big hit and he was soon the darling of the whole school. That was in the year 1981, and his class performed very well with many getting express admissions to National schools. His fame spread like bush fire and back at his home in Baringo North, many people heard that Ruto had quit alcohol and was already causing a positive revolution in the education sector!.
To celebrate his sterling performance, some well to do parents from Kewamoi asked him to report to Kabarnet town because they had a surprise for him. Kapkelelwa primary school head teacher Mr.Simon Kebut, then famously known as Kirum-gong was the man send to look for him because that was the only mode of communication during those days.
Through him, he learned that the Kewamoi parents were planning ‘to drown him in alcohol’, and had even identified a club at Kabarnet town as the perfect venue '' to kill him very silly ''.
‘’My drinking problem had actually made me famous throughout the education fraternity, making it very difficult for many acquaintances to believe that I could quit the vice.’’ said Ruto with a mixture of joy and sadness very evident in his voice.
‘’I was very timid to let the world know that I was already a changed man. I send a message full of lies to the parents of Kewamoi, telling them not to expect me at Kabarnet because a liver problem had forced the Doctor to warn me against drinking alcohol, or I would die .I had to feign sickness because to your drinking buddies, it’s always a big betrayal for one to announce his or her decision to quit the drinking club. My doubting drinking mates tempted me by offering to buy me drinks and after discovering that I had made a vow never to return to ‘Babylon ‘, they started avoiding me and I said good riddance! ‘’ said the teacher with a face full of victory, remembering that day like it was yesterday.
In the year 1985,a delegation from Baringo North led by one Nathaniel Barmosio stormed Kewamoi primary school near Sacho; demanding that Ruto go back home. His services were badly needed at a school known as Atiar.
‘’I was now a very important person because I was no more a drunkard!’’ said Ruto with a smile that made his eyes to disappear into the sockets in a brief moment.
There was a big tussle between the Barmosio team and Kewamoi primary school parents. The Barmosio team had literally planned to kidnap Ruto ,and use political influence to rubber stamp his transfer through the then education office in Kabarnet.In the month of September the same year 1985,he reported to Atiar .
‘’I really missed my family, and wanted to see them daily. I wanted to compensate for the many years I wasted in the slavery of alcoholism.” Said Ruto.
A blessing came in a quick succession and he was promoted to serve as a head teacher at Kabaron primary school before moving to Ng’orora in the year 1988.With life back to normal, he managed to educate all his children to the colleges and even University levels. He personally saw the need to further his education. The University of Columbia in New York City, Upper Manhattan enrolled him to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Education, graduating in the year 2000.The teachers service Commission in Kenya recognized his papers; and something important happened to his pay slip and all through to his retirement package.
This veteran teacher,Ruto,is warning everybody and especially the youth never to try alcohol. It is a slippery road to destruction. He is challenging the youth to stand with their own principles, to make a promise to themselves never to taste alcohol, no matter the pressure from their friends, no matter how beautiful it looks inside the bottle, it’ a killer of homes,a killer of dreams and a threat to National stability!
‘’They should avoid socializing with friends who drink because just like me; it will just be a matter of time before they start drinking in order to please certain people.’said Ruto, at the same time giving special thanks to the Ministry of Education for giving him a second chance. He is requesting the society and even the government of Kenya to understand all the drunkards.
‘’Do not demonize them; they are sick people in need of love and rehabilitation’’said Ruto in his parting shot..
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