Kung'u Karumba was a Kenyan
nationalist
Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a group of people), Smith, Anthony. ''Nationalism: The ...
and freedom-fighter. He was a member of the
Kapenguria Six
The Kapenguria Six – Bildad Kaggia, Kung'u Karumba, Jomo Kenyatta, Fred Kubai, Paul Ngei, and Achieng' Oneko – were six leading Kenyan nationalists who were arrested in 1952, tried at Kapenguria in 1952–53, and imprisoned thereafter in No ...
, along with
Bildad Kaggia
Bildad Mwaganu Kaggia (1921 – 7 March 2005) was a Kenyan nationalist, activist, and politician. Kaggia was a member of the Mau Mau Central Committee. After independence he became a Member of Parliament. He established himself as a militant, fi ...
,
Jomo Kenyatta
Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He was the country's first indigenous ...
,
Fred Kubai
Fred Kubai (1917–June 1, 1996) was one of the Kapenguria Six, members of the Kenya African Union arrested in 1952, tried and imprisoned.
He was a Kikuyu people, Kikuyu, and a leader of the Kenya Transport Workers Union and the East African Trade ...
,
Paul Ngei
The Honourable Paul Joseph Ngei (18 October 1923 – 15 August 2004) was a Kenyan politician who was imprisoned for his role in the anti-colonial movement, but who went on to hold several government ministerial positions after Kenya became indepe ...
, and
Achieng Oneko.
Kungu Karumba along with five other men, including
Jomo Kenyatta
Jomo Kenyatta (22 August 1978) was a Kenyan anti-colonial activist and politician who governed Kenya as its Prime Minister from 1963 to 1964 and then as its first President from 1964 to his death in 1978. He was the country's first indigenous ...
, were arrested on October 20, 1952 in Kapenguria by British colonial governor, for being involved in a revolutionary group called the
Mau Mau, which led a revolt against British colonial rule. Reason as to why the case was held in Kapenguria was so that the Mau Mau could not get to free the men. The area was remote at the time. He was convicted and locked up in prison for seven years with hard labor before the country's independence on December 12, 1963.
Following Kenya's independence, he remained a close friend and influential advisor to Kenyatta who had risen to
Prime Minister of Kenya. Active as businessman, Karumba invested in
Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
. He loaned a substantial sum of money to the wife of Ugandan military commander
Isaac Maliyamungu, but she did not pay back her debt. Karumba consequently travelled to Uganda in June 1974,
and disappeared, his fate unclear.
[Kenya History - Makes of a Nation](_blank)
/ref> Intelligence reports later implicated Maliyamungu of murdering Karumba during a disagreement over his wife's debts.
Family
Kung'u Karumba had a son called Abraham Karanja.
Business career
As a business man, Kung'u Karumba invested in the transport industry where he owned a fleet of long distance vehicles.
Legacy
In Kenya, Karumba is considered a national hero. His disappearance garnered much attention,
/ref>
References
The case that immortalised Kenya's 'Kapenguria Six'. (2017, July 1). Retrieved from https://www.theeastafrican.co.ke/magazine/Case-that-immortalised-Kenya-Kapenguria-Six-/434746-3995106-s8sxn5z/index.html
External links
Life in Kenya: The Land and the People, Modern and Traditional Ways - Godfrey Mwakikagile - Google Books
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karumba, Kung'u
Kenyan rebels
1902 births
1978 deaths
Prisoners and detainees of Kenya
Kenyan businesspeople