Githumu Memoirs: Mr. Rombosia, the Master of Discipline (Part I).

In my time at Githumu High School, there was a giant of a man, probably taller and bigger than the infamous former Ugandan President, Idi Amin. He walked majestically around the school and its environs. He was the school’s headmaster and the master of discipline. He was feared by students, teachers and villagers around the Githumu area and beyond. His name was Mr. Rombosia though interestingly, the students referred to him by a nickname ‘Hii’.

One day Mr. Rombosia found out about the nickname. He came to the school assembly visibly shaken and upset. He shouted for all who could hear to the effect that he was circumcised and so he should not be referred to as ‘Hii’. Somebody must have told him that Hii was a derivation of the term “kihii” which means a big uncircumcised boy in the local Kikuyu language. Most students and villagers from the local community as well, assumed that Rombosia, the other male teachers and students from other communities were not circumcised.

Rombosia was truly incensed and dared those who doubted that he was circumcised to get in touch with his wife for confirmation or send a woman to him to find out. The students and teachers alike laughed. But Rombosia was not amused and demanded that students stop referring to him as ‘Hii’. Students continued using the nickname regardless though understandably of course, none wished to be caught or taken to Rombosia over the issue because he was no ordinary disciplinarian and was feared by all.

Rombosia did not hesitate to discipline his students outside the school compound. His white Volvo car was well known in the Githumu area. Villagers and students could be seen running and hiding in the bush whenever his car was seen. This happened particularly if the villagers were in the company of students. He didn’t hesitate to discipline anybody wearing school uniform, even those from other schools.

It is at the Githumu Shopping Center (called the Plot but simply referred to as ‘Mbuloti’) that he caused most havoc.

Students would regularly sneak out of the school and go to one of numerous local hotels for tea and what was called karara (half chapati). I loved karara with tea. They made good tea in Githumu and the karara, soft and sweet was excellent. The place had many dairy farmers whose cow’s yielded lots of milk and so unlike other places where milk was scarce, tea in Githumu was made with abundant milk and tasted as if it was made just by adding tea leaves into a pot of boiling milk. I doubt if people in the area cared about the amount of milk they used. They seemed to have too much milk and just served people tea made of plain milk and tea leaves. I also doubt if people in that area knew of what others in Central Kenya call ‘turungi’, a corruption of the true tea. Turungi was made of just plain water and tea leaves , the equivalent of coffee without milk, known as ‘kafiaru’ (kabiaru), another local corruption of an English phrase meaning coffee without milk or directly translated to mean ‘coffee alone’. Being affordable, Karara and tea were the most common delicacies for the poor students. With two shillings, one would have enough tea to go with karara or mandazi.

Students liked the tea offered around the Plot because one needed only buy a glass or cup of tea with either half a loaf of bread or with karara or mandazi. One could get more tea for free as long as they could show that they needed the additional tea to “finish” the bread, karara or mandazi. You would hear these people request for ‘nyongeza’ (additional) tea and see the hotel keeper come to add more tea into the customers’ cup or glass. The objective would be to drink more tea and eat less of the accompaniment so that you could show the hotel keeper that you had karara or bread left but needed more tea to go with it. The hotels served tea in some glasses which held hot liquids and the high temperature lasted for ages.

Githumu, an extremely cold place sits on the foot of the Aberdare ranges. A place that proved far too cold for those of us who came from the lower sides of Murang’a District. As a result, hot tea was a necessity for those who didn’t want to freeze to death. Yet, it was very risky taking tea or anything else in those hotels. Many traders were hesitant about selling food or other items to students during class hours. In the hotels most would be scared stiff if a student appeared and wanted to sit down to eat within those hours. A scout would then be posted at the door looking out for Rombosia and if the dreaded disciplinarian was seen coming that way, the door was hurriedly closed.

Rombosia would park his Volvo at a particular spot and start going from one hotel to another searching for students. He would get into a hotel and inspect the patrons, looking for anybody wearing the school uniform - a blue cardigan, white shirt and black shorts. If Rombosia managed to get inside that hotel and found a student, then the trader would surely regret ever serving that student or entertaining him in his premises. Seeing a student patron, Rombosia would grab him by the collar and at the same time enquiring of the student if he had a permission slip (a slip given by a teacher showing that a student had permission to be outside the school) The master of discipline would then rain blows and kicks on the student who didn’t have the permission slip or simply throw him out of the hotel onto the road. Such a student would come out of the encounter bleeding or even with some broken ribs, looking as if a lorry had run over him. A slap from Rombosia was severe enough to leave a black eye or make a student deaf on the spot.

Some students were not as lucky. On numerous occasions, Rombosia would grab from the jiko or fire place or from the table, a kettle full of hot tea and without giving much thought about the people seated next to the student, would splash the tea on the student probably scalding other hotel patrons in the process. This act usually sent everyone including the hotel owner and staff scampering for safety, out of the hotel looking for some place to hide. Rombosia, satisfied, would then walk out as if nothing had happened, striding majestically to the next hotel searching for his misguided students. These extreme methods explain why most hotels and shops would hurriedly close whenever the Volvo was seen approaching the Plot.

On occasion, Rombosia would be driving along the road and spotting a student in the company of the villagers; he would suddenly stop the car and rush out, chasing after the student. If he got hold of a rock or piece of wood, Rombosia would hurl it at the student who would be lucky not to get caught. Those accompanying the student ended up being casualties. Villagers avoided students like the plague and by no means wanted Rombosia to find them in student company.

The only positive thing for the otherwise unfortunate student was that Rombosia finished with the punishment on the spot. No student got suspended or was asked to see him again in school as long as he meted some form of on the spot discipline. The student was then only required to immediately go back to school.

There were some exceptions to Rombosia’s outrageous punishments. For example, if you were an A-Level student or a mono (Form one also known as ‘njuka’) you never got punished by Rombosia unless you committed some major sin such as fighting other students or cursing a teacher. The A-Levels were allowed to go out to the Plot without permission. They wore different uniforms and so were recognizable from afar. Rombosia acknowledged that they were mature enough to know and do what was right. Monos were after all assumed to be too young and new to understand the rules and regulations of the school and were usually given verbal warnings. He didn’t care much about monos going out without permission. In any case, very few of them were brave enough to knowingly break any school rule. Form Twos on the other hand, Rombosia hated with a passion.

Back at the Plot, information about Rombosia’s visit would spread to other hotel owners who would then hurriedly close their hotels albeit with the patrons inside. Some opportunists simply loved to see him visit the Plot. These people took advantage of the commotion and went off without paying for the food they had ordered. The hotel owners also didn’t have time to get the patrons to pay for food at that time. They either held them hostage in the locked hotel or just let them run away. There was no time to wait for Rombosia to visit inside the hotel and everyone would be busy either hiding or running away. Many outsiders or students got hurt or scalded whenever Rombosia visited the Plot and found one of his students in a hotel, shop or just outside loitering.

Githumu Shopping Center had a single street stretching from the Road leading to the Githumu High School and another leading to Kangari/ Njiris High School. From the junction of the road leading to the Githumu High School, the street had shops and hotels on both sides of the road and then branched off at the market to make two streets which joined at the end of the market towards Kangari/Njiris High School. The two streets surrounded the market before they joined at both ends of the market. The market was therefore located in the middle of the Shopping Center with shops on both sides facing the market and with a road on their front side. These shops looked as if they surrounded the market. There was a fence surrounding the market and several entry points to market.

There were several small hotels (kiosks), shops and rental houses. The rental houses were located at the back of these buildings or on their own. Many male students who came from areas far from Githumu resided in these rental houses. Some students from near the school lived with their families.

There was one residential area made of several single rooms at the back of the shops near the market where most of the students resided. All the girls resided in school but boys were allowed to become day scholars. There was a shortage of beds for the boys and male students had to ballot at the time they enrolled in form one for the right to reside in school. It was the day scholars residing in these rental houses who sometimes opted to spend time at the shopping center instead of attending classes. Some students also sneaked out of the school to go to the shopping center. It would have been difficult to recognize students if they didn’t wear uniform. It is those students who went out wearing school uniform who usually attracted Rombosia’s attention and wrath.

In one renowned case, Rombosia appeared at the Plot during a market day. He was driving his Volvo on that day when he sighted a student at the other end of the market walking along the road. Rombosia stopped his car and grabbed a huge piece of wood. He went running through the market, from one side across to the other side towards where the student was. He was holding the piece of wood, chasing after the student, shouting and demanding that he stop. Of course no student in his right mind would stop and wait for Rombosia because he knew the severe repercussions.

As he approached the other end of the market, Rombosia saw the student running away and hurled the piece of wood which went flying over the market goers towards the student. The piece of wood narrowly missed the student but landed on the face of an elderly cyclist. The man fell from his bicycle and lay on the ground bleeding as everyone else ran away howling. There was total commotion around the market, with people running away, some completely unaware of what was going on. Women were heard screaming, the elderly man was still lying on the ground while Rombosia continued to chase after the student. The market goers perhaps didn’t know what to do with the elderly man or were simply not ready to face the wrath of the bull of Githumu. Most opted to watch the drama unfold from the sides as far from Rombosia as was possible.

The student managed to disappear behind the shops and out of sight. Rombosia went back to where the elderly man lay down. He took the bicycle and put it in boot of the famous Volvo. He then lifted the injured man, put him inside the car and drove off to Githumu Mission Hospital (located inside his school).

Kuria Mwangi

http://www.kuria-mwangi.blogspot.com

http://www.facebook.com/kjmwangi

© Kuria Mwangi 2009

(To be continued).