Mention the word Harambee and what comes to the mind of many Kenyans is funds drive.
In the spirit of harambee, former President Moi raised funds for development projects including schools and stadiums.
The late artist Daudi Kabaka and his compatriot John Nzenze composed the song, Harambee Harambee tuimbee pamoja, which largely inspired the spirit of patriotism in Kenyans to support development initiatives.The song thus goes: “Harambee Harambee tuimbe pamoja…tujenge serikali…Wananchi Harambee tufute pamoja….”
During Moi’s reign, funds drive would range from informal affairs lasting a few hours, in which invitations were spread by word of mouth, to formal ones advertised in newspapers.
ExpungedOne of the notable projects that benefited from the spirit of harambee was construction of the ultra-modern Moi Primary School in Kabarak in 1995, where Sh40 million was raised.
A video on YouTube shows Moi presiding over a funds drive that raised Sh2.5 million with his contribution of Sh1.1 million in Machakos in the 1990s.
Funds drive are still popular today. In January 2002, the Risk Advisory Group Ltd, commissioned by President Moi’s administration as part of the anti-corruption efforts recommended the abolition of harambees.
In 2003, when the National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) took over from Kanu, former President Kibaki enacted the Public Officers Ethics Act, which prohibited Members of Parliament and Cabinet Secretaries from presiding over harambees.In February 2018, a petition was presented to the Senate by Isaac Aluochier, seeking to have “harambee” expunged from the court of arms, public seal, and all other public documents, claiming that it represents a Hindu goddess.Senators differed over the matter and Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka directed the Committee on Justice, Legal Affairs and Human Rights to look into the petition and present a report in 60 days.
During the Constitution review, a lobby group also sought to have harambee expunged from court of arms for its apparent Hindu origin.
The origin of the word harambee has generated controversy with some arguing that it was borrowed from a Mijikenda word “Halumbe” which means to pull or push together.
The word, some say originated from Indians who were building the East Africa railway line, as a slogan for pulling together.They called on Ambe – one of their goddesses – for strength and blessings.Hence the chant was “Hare Ambe” loosely translated as “Hail Ambe.”
The African workers equally joined in the chant and it soon became a rallying call for pulling together.It is thus claimed that, when the founding father Mzee Jomo Kenyatta visited the railway construction site and saw the unifying effect of the word, he borrowed it as a rallying call for the nation to pool resources.
Interestingly some places are named harambee while the word is in the dictionary.There exists Harambee Avenue, that hosts major government offices including Office of the President, National Treasury and Attorney General Chambers.
The building that hosts the President’s office is called Harambee house while Harambee Stars is the national football team.It is also printed on the Kenya currency.There is an area in Kakamega County named Harambee.
Harambee is also a market in Usonga ward in Siaya County.A section of leaders and the public have condemned abuse of the spirit of harambee through misappropriation of funds by individuals, forced contributions by government officials, forced and unofficial deductions on the salaries of government employees, poor coordination of harambee funded projects.
