Drunkards are an interesting lot. They are at times funnier than your
average Kenyan comedian, if the theatrics a bunch of them brought to
a Nyeri court a week ago is anything to go by. A group of 85 men had
been arraigned in court and charged with being drunk and disorderly.
That some of them were still in a drunken stupor made the courtroom
literally turn into a theatre of the absurd.
Interestingly, a mtungi (pot) full of a frothy brew, which was still
fermenting and from which some of the suspects never moved their eyes,
was produced in court as exhibit. Drama began when the court clerk
started explaining to them why they had been arraigned in court.
“Mlipatikana mkipiga kelele na kutembea kwa mwendo wa kuyumbayumba (You
were caught drunk and disorderly),” he told them. In unison, the
drunkards pleaded guilty to the charges, and that was when the comedy
began. Each one of them was given an opportunity to explain why they
were “disturbing peace” and why they should not be charged. First on
the line was a particularly witty individual who asked the court to
free him because his youngest daughter was pregnant. He told the
magistrate that he is the sole breadwinner of his family including the
foetus in his 17-year-old daughter’s womb. “Huyo musichana alikuwa
ametoroka, lakini kurudi alikuja na mimba (My daughter had run away
from home, only to return with a pregnancy,” said the man, arousing a
merry round of laughter in the packed courtroom.
See also: Shock as mourners carries own plate,spoon to funeral
Last sip
The next
drunk told the court he was in the process of quitting alcohol and, in
fact, he was on his last day when the police ambushed the den and
arrested him on his last sip. He said he had resolved to quit alcohol
after he recently witnessed, ‘booze warriors’ succumb to illicit liquor
in different parts of the country. “For the 10 years I have been
drinking, I have never been arrested by police. This was in fact bad
luck to me because I was in the process of quitting alcohol when they
came. They just caught me on my last sip,” he repeated. And before the
tickled courtroom could recover from outbursts and ramblings, one of
his partners in crime, perhaps not to be outdone, took the comedy a
notch higher. In his defence, he told the magistrate he never takes
alcohol but had turned to it after the scotching sun on that day
“burned” his head, disorganising his thinking, moving and seeing
faculties. “The sun had burned my head, thus I couldn’t do things
properly. That is why I turned to alcohol, but I swear here today, I
will never drink again,” he pleaded.But the showstopper was an elderly man who tickled those in attendance. After pleading guilty to the charges, told the magistrate that even before slapping him with any
amount of bail, he should be released to go and look for more money to
bail himself out because all he had in his pocket was Sh100! "Nii ndiro na igana rimwe. Ona kaba mwambe mundekererie ndie
ngethe icio ingi (All I have is Sh100. If you can, please free me
so that I can go get you the rest if the fine exceeds that)” he begged,
rather emotionally. Interestingly, the magistrate heard his plea, and
only fined him Sh100!
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