Mazrui, foremost scholar reknown in fields of History and
Economics globally. Mazrui is one of the three mega professors from
Africa, the others being Wole Soyinka and Ngugi. They are icons and have
contributed immensely to African scholarship. PHOTO/ANTHONY
KAMAU/FILE
I read last week’s Saturday Nation story
entitled “Ochieng’ has no regrets working for Moi” and was disappointed
that the professor avoided answering most of the questions, choosing
instead to embellish his side of the story.
That is
vintage William Ochieng’ for you! He will go to great lengths to dismiss
everyone apart from himself. While growing up, I enjoyed reading Prof
Ochieng’s column in the Sunday Nation and admired his articulation,
analyses and interpretation of issues. Although he sometimes came across
as arrogant, his arguments were grounded in facts.
Prof
Ochieng’ still remains academically arrogant, but facts have long
ceased to be part of his forte and academic mantra. He has become more
abrasive and assumes that scholarship in Kenya ended with him and those
of his generation. There is evidence that he has read some of my
commentaries in newspapers, but I doubt if he has read any of my books.
I
was astonished to read Prof Ochieng’ tear into Kenya’s two most
prominent scholars, Ngugi wa Thiong’o and Ali Mazrui, the way he did. I
do not regard Ngugi as a tribalist simply because there were more Kikuyu
students graduating with Masters degrees in Literature when he was head
of the Department of Literature at the University of Nairobi.
They
say those who live in glass houses should not throw stones, because
Prof Ochieng’ has similarly been accused of presiding over a Luo
hegemony when he headed Maseno University in the 1990s. It was said some
meetings were conducted in Dholuo when the only non-Luo member of
management was absent.
The role of the Mau Mau in the
liberation of Kenya cannot be gainsaid and Prof Ochieng’ should not
dismiss it as a mere peasant uprising, which he alleges had nothing to
do with our independence. He should settle his personal scores with
Ngugi without distorting history.
Prof Ali Mazrui is
one of the three mega professors from Africa, the others being Wole
Soyinka and Ngugi. They are icons and have contributed immensely to
African scholarship. I was, therefore, taken aback when I read the
unkind words Prof Ochieng’ was hurling at these great scholars.
Do
not misunderstand me. Prof Ochieng’ is a good scholar, but his academic
prowess cannot compare to Ngugi or Mazrui’s, for while Ochieng’ has
remained Kenyan, writing about Yimbo and Kadimo ruothdoms (kingdoms) and
Abagusii, Ngugi and Mazrui have engaged in greater questions and
discourses such as decolonisation and statecraft in Africa and the wider
world.
He may want to know that since he wrote the
history of the Abagusii in the 1970s, other scholars have since emerged
in Kenya, writing on other interesting subjects and not just migration.
They include Maurice Amutabi, Eunice Kamaara, Godwin Murunga. John
Mwaruvie, Kenneth Simala, Mary Nyangweso, Kennedy Onkware, Shadrack
Nasong’o, Peter Odhiambo Ndege, Anne Nangulu, Adams Oloo, Frank Matanga
and Oscar Mwangi.
The fascinating part of the interview
is when Prof Ochieng’ was asked: “Prof Maurice Amutabi has projected
you as old school, a defender of professors who use yellow notes to
lecture since you yourself never mastered the Socratic method of
teaching.” His rather shallow and mundane response was terse and
dismissive and made no reference to me.
I got numerous
calls on Saturday with a lot of my former students telling me how my
Socratic style of teaching inspired them, while some friends and former
students of Prof Ochieng’ confided in me how I was right about his lack
of mastery of the Socratic method.
While studying at
the University of Nairobi, I admired teachers like Prof Mwangi wa
Githumo, Prof Korwa Adar, Prof Njuguna Ng’ethe and Dr Katete Orwa, who
came to class with only chalk, and sometimes with cards. They had
confidence in what they taught and we admired and applauded them.
Reading
Prof Ochieng’s comments last Saturday, I was reminded of the time last
year when he tore into me, with bare knuckles, for daring to speak about
lecturers who read yellow or brown notes to students. In a piece
mischievously entitled “Amutabi talks tough, but show us his books” in
the Daily Nation, Prof Ochieng’ suggested he has published more books
than me, which is inaccurate.
On that occasion, he came
out as an unapologetic defender of bad lecturers who shamelessly
embarrass those of us who prepare adequately before a lecture.
Many
scholars know that Prof Ochieng’ loves nasty and ugly fights,
especially in public. Like the vintage Ochieng’, he skipped the
important topic of bad teaching, the subject of my article, and moved to
a different subject on books, where he mistakenly thought he might have
an advantage over me.
For the record, I have
published more and better books. If he wants to contest this, our
academic peers can be asked to compare our works. I wonder if he
considers his little pamphlets titled First Word, Second Word and Third
Word that were churned out of his polemical and unsubstantiated articles
in the Sunday Nation, as books!
What is more, Prof
Ochieng borrowed the titles of these little books from Taban Liyong’s
book, The Last Word, which he tried to rubbish, unsuccessfully. This may
explain why Liyong was at the receiving end from Prof Ochieng’ last
week.
Prof Ochieng’ used some unsavoury words to
describe Liyong, including calling him a liar and blaming him for being a
refugee in Kenya.
The professor did not come out clean
whether he is a user of yellow notes (brown notes) or not. He asked to
be shown my books, and said that he would come to Nairobi to see them.
Well, Prof Ochieng’ should be advised that in this day and age, my books
are just a mouse click away.
He only needs to search for ‘Maurice Amutabi’ on any academic search engine and the books are there, ready for him to order.
To
be kind, it may help the old professor to know that I am now in Kisii
Town, less than 150km from Maseno, and he is free to come and see my
books.
By Maurice N. Amutabi. Prof Amutabi is
deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic and Student Affairs) at Kisii
University. Amutabi@yahoo.com
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