Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka is one of the outstanding politicians who are also practising lawyers. In his 2016 autobiography, Against All Odds, Musyoka narrated that by the time he was in Form Six at Meru High School in 1973, he had already decided to be a lawyer so that he could fight for his rights and those of others.
Two incidents, a strike by his Sixth Form classmates and a pair of thieving hands, while he was in the fourth form, helped to form his resolve. His peers wanted to go on a strike after the school pulled out bread with butter/margarine from the Sixth Form breakfast table. Being a prefect, Kalonzo negotiated a workable solution between the students and administration.
The strike was called off and Musyoka earned an excellent recommendation from his headteacher who wrote in his school-leaving certificate that he had demonstrated qualities of a good leader. The robbery incident, however, was the funniest incident that inspired Musyoka's political career.
"Towards my examination time, someone pinched my clothes off the clothesline where I had hung them out to dry. I was distraught because those were the only good clothes I had.
"After desperate inquiries yielded nothing, I decided to lay a trap. I thought to myself that whoever had stolen my clothes would want to steal again," Musyoka recalls, stating that he forfeited his night studies, hung his bed sheets on the line and waited patiently at a vantage point.
According to the seasoned politician, it was one of the longest nights of his life as mosquitoes feasted on his blood and cold engulfed him. Musyoka further stated that he felt the rage to fight despite not being a combative person naturally.
At exactly 8:30 p.m., a tall, lanky fellow emerged from the shadows and walked stealthily towards the clothesline. He glanced nervously in every direction before picking the sheets.
"I pounced on him, shouting and waving my rungu (club), as I struggled to subdue him. The commotion attracted other boys who rushed out of the classroom shouting 'Thief! Thief!'
"Terrified by the students' anger, the man subdued, volunteered to take us to his den," Musyoka pinpoints the event to detail.
In the shack, they found lots of lost items including Musyoka's uniform. The incident made him famous among his peers. The thief turned out to be a relative of one of the school's subordinate staff members. The suspect was handed over to Kitui Central Police Station.
"That was where my real encounter with the law began. After recording statements with the police, I would travel to court in Kitui to testify in the theft case. The case dragged on for days and weeks. I would sit through the entire court session and many others where lawyers would cross-examine the witness in criminal cases.
"The articulation of the language greatly inspired me as did the etiquette of court officials, their eloquence and ability to effortlessly quote relevant texts. I told myself, 'This is what I'm going to do'," Musyoka recounted.
The suspect was found guilty and sentenced to serve some prison sentence.
"I asked myself how best could I serve those who were poor and down-trodden? How best could I serve the greater nation of Kenya? What profession would effectively help me out of poverty that had almost etched onto my psyche? I needed self-empowerment so that I too could empower those around me. These thoughts led me into law and politics," Musyoka writes.
