Kiong’anyo Hill, which is adjacent to Kisii township, presents various contradictions.

While it provides precious material for traditional house construction, it also serves as a viewpoint for illicit brew-takers to see police from a distance and take off before being caught.

Chief Justice David Maraga remembers vividly how this hill almost ruined his life for this is where he and his friends in high school would hide and drink themselves into a stupor.

Justice Maraga disclosed that his love for the bottle started while at Kisii High School and Kiong’anyo provided the best hideout where he and his friends would swallow their ''precious'' drinks without worrying about being caught, either by police or teachers.  

Justice Maraga revealed that he had joined Kisii School from Maranda High School. Here, he found a group of young men who would sneak out of school and trek up to the top of the hill to enjoy the alcohol.

“There was a hill near Kisii School where we would go to drink. I continued with this habit all through to the time I worked as an advocate. From 1963 to 1991, I was a different person,” he said, referring to Kiong’anyo and the role this hill played in ruining young people.

He made the revelation as he delivered a sermon at Nyambaria Boys' High School in Nyamira County during the institution’s alumni service last year.

The hill has lived up to its tradition and, to date, it is popular for chang’aa brewing.

Unadulterated traditionally brewed liquor

Here, you will get unadulterated traditionally brewed liquor.

Located in Nyaribari Chache, the beautiful Kiong’anyo hill stands northeast of Kisii township. The hill is about five kilometres from the central business district.  

The hill provides the best viewpoint of Kisii town. It provides ideal photographing sites as you can easily capture the whole of the town and its environs.  

Besides its notoriety for illicit chang’aa brewing, the hill also provides a precious material, thatching grass, used by Abagusii in construction of traditional houses, commonly known as chisaiga.

These chisaiga are thatched houses where Kisii people who cannot afford corrugated iron sheet roofs live.  

This grass is a special type of material, which is long and smooth. The grass continues being used to thatch homes in the poverty-stricken interior parts of Kisii.

The tall savanna grass on the hill, and other factors, offer a perfect joint for lovebirds who want to escape the hustle and bustle of the heavily congested Kisii town to meet and plan their affairs.

Lovers who cannot afford hotel fees in town, those who love nature, and those who want to keep off prying eyes find refuge on the hill.

If hills could speak, they would tell a thousand love tales, because it is here where love is brewed.

Slopes of the escarpment

You will often find a young girl and a man seated at the slopes of the escarpment, covered by the tall grass, opening their hearts to each other.

The hill also emerges as an historic site for the Abagusii people. In days gone by, the Abagusii people used to visit the hill to perform special rituals.

Mr Joseph Makori says that to date, the hill continues to be of great significance to the community, particularly those who live near it.

According to Mr Makori, people would climb the hill to view modern newly-constructed buildings put up by British colonial masters.

Then there was the famous prophet among the community known as Sakagwa who used to climb up the hill to make prophecies, some of which came to pass.

“He used to wear banana leaves and his hair grew over his ears. He never talked to anybody, so people thought he was dumb,” said Mr Makori.

One of his prophecies is that the town would grow and flourish and those who “had sons and daughters” would inherit it.

The prophecy goes by ‘amandegere naame Getembe, oyore na momura nayae’ which loosely translates to ''mushrooms will grow in Kisii town and those who had educated their children would harvest them''.

Figurative language

According to the 80-year-old, the mushroom was figurative language that meant many resources will be in the town as a result of urbanisation and the booming business within Bosongo.  

The hills were also significant as women used to go there to sing and perform the Ribina Dance.

This was a traditional dance that women performed during the dry season to appease the gods to send rains.

Since the community engaged in farming as their main economic activity, rains were essential and the gods were believed to be responsible for their coming or not.

“Women would ascend these hills and dance in circles so that the spirits could listen to their pleas. When going for this dance, they would carry food with them, especially millet, which they would exchange for other commodities as they danced in their traditional attire made mainly of banana leaves and stalks,” said Mr Francis Ochenge, an elder.

The garments were traditionally known as chingoba.  The women would carry the millet in traditional troughs known as chinteru.

The word Kiong’anyo derived its name from the Kisii word ng’anya which means migrate.  The hilly place was not fertile and the soil was sandy, the reason for their migration.

Even wild animals would not acclimatise to the environment as strong winds blew over the hills according to Mr Ochenge.

Another activity that these hills hosted included wrestling where those who wanted to show how strong and powerful they were would face up.

Wrestling would acknowledge the strength of one. It was one way of promoting the culture and norms of the community. This was mostly for young people who were physically capable.

Since the hills are steep, the antagonists would roll down the hills, to the amusement of the spectators.

A man was believed to prove his physical strength by fighting his aggressors.

Before going to wrestle, the young men would train for months and those who came out victorious would be admired and respected by all particularly women. The winner would be seen as a warrior.

Besides entertaining locals, wrestling would help settle certain disputes such as in determining the right groom in cases where a young woman had many suitors. In such instances, a wrestling match would be organised and whoever outdoes the other suitors will marry the woman.  

Abandoned

However, with the world changing so fast, some of the activities that used to be carried out at the hillls have been abandoned.

Shrinking land sizes have also forced locals to encroach on the historical hills as they seek to occupy every space available.

Most importantly, the hills currently provide a good place for picnics and video shooting as most people travel here to enjoy the beautiful scenery.

Kisii Governor James Ongwae says his government plans annual cultural festivals as a means of conserving the cultural heritage that will attract local and foreign tourists.

He says  indigenous cultures should be preserved for the sake of future generations.

“We are keen on partnering with community members in preservation of cultural sites in the county,” he said.

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