Kenyan grandpa, 90, brings global family together via Skype

At 90, John Mbugua debates Kenya’s politics, art and culture as expertly as any scholar. The old man has lived through the colonial era as well as Kenya’s four post-independence regimes.

He has seen the country undergo tremendous changes in the field of technology.

Over Christmas and the New Year celebrations Mr Mbugua used Skype, an application which allows one to converse with another over the Internet through video link, to talk to his grandchildren who are pursuing education overseas.

“I don’t know why people do not keep in touch with each other despite all the advantages of mobile phones and the internet. I am disappointed by those who have my phone number and never call or text to say ‘hallo’ when I make all efforts to keep in touch with those I care about”.

At his age, Mr Mbugua has taken his time to learn how to use the computer and watches documentaries about farming — learning the latest technologies to apply to his fish farming hobby.

Biogas

Mr Mbugua invites agricultural extension officers to his farm regularly, a habit that made him among the first person in his neighbourhood to use biogas to light his home.

During the last Christmas celebrations, which has been a tradition in his household, Mr Mbugua gathered his large family that comprises five grown children in their 50s, 23 grandchildren and seven great grandchildren. He had written a six-page speech the previous night, each page carefully labelled to avoid confusion.

Why does he present written speeches during such festivities year in year out?

“My children know what is important because I brought them up well, but there is no harm in reminding them of what it means to live as a man of purpose once in a while,” he said.

Sitting before a laptop running the Skype feature, Mr Mbugua read his speech to the family seated around him on his expansive estate in Lanet on the outskirts of Nakuru town.

He frequently re-positioned his laptop so that his grandchildren living in the United States and Russia could hear and see him more clearly. One of his granddaughters, an engineer, provided a mobile phone that was used as a source of internet data bundles.

The phone was connected to the WiFi empowered laptop during the entire 30 minute transmission.

Mr Mbugua encouraged his grandchildren living abroad to learn to the highest level and urged his grown children not to discriminate against girls.

In the speech, written in his Agikuyu mother tongue, Mr Mbugua talked about his journey to creating wealth, urging his grandchildren to value hard work and use the opportunity to gather social intelligence.

“During our age we danced in discos like Chinese Kung-fu martial artistes, but we never ran away from taking responsibility over our lives because that is the holy thing to do when you are alive and healthy,” he said.

During his journey to independence and self-dependence, he said, he had even dug toilets.

“There are values life has to teach you”, he read from his speech, “and unless you are patient with the chaos that assail you within and without you can never get the lesson out of the days God has given you on the face of the earth.

“My children, you have no idea what others went through to make the families and the wealth they have… it took discipline, commitment and most of all hard work”, he said.

He said that at barely 19, in 1943, he was enrolled at Native Industrial Training Depot, currently known as Kabete Polytechnic, for a three-month course to become an artisan based at the ‘‘heavy repairs workshop’’.

Soldiers

Between 1939 and 1945 when the institution was converted into a recruiting centre for soldiers during the Second World War, Mr Mbugua was among Kenyans who were enrolled as part of the King’s African Rifles and sent to Burma to fight against the Japanese.

Mr Mbugua loves photography and understands what pixels are and clear pictures.

Throughout his speech, Mr Mbugua insisted that family portraits should be taken with the professional Rebel Camera because he wanted ‘‘clear pictures that would not fade faster than my aging memory’’.

Aware that some of his workers did not understand his mother tongue, he translated his speech into impeccable Kiswahili.

Mr Mbugua had been driving his tractors and lorries, assisting his workers with farm work, until he suffered a knee ailment which led to surgery early this year.

He also attends Sunday service at the local Anglican Inland Church (AIC) where he also sings.

@VerahOkeyo