Even before the news of the passing on of Kenya’s first black Attorney General, Charles Mugane Njonjo, hit the country, his body had already been cremated.
Njonjo’s doctor, David Silverstein, who also served late President Daniel Moi, declared him dead at 5 am Sunday at his home in Muthaiga, Nairobi.
His body was, thereafter, hastily, taken to Lee Funeral Home, where it was prepared for cremation at Kariokor Hindu Crematorium, Nairobi.
What could have led to the fast turn of events for a person of such stature locally and internationally, that even no government officials were present at the cremation?
In an interview with renowned journalist Jackson Biko in 2015, Njonjo, who was then 95, said he did not fear death, adding he had made necessary arrangements for his cremation.
“Death is something you can face, why fear it? I don’t engage in that kind of thought and I don’t want anyone to raise money when I die, friends meeting at the cathedral. I don’t want any collection of money,” he said.
While the cremation process is still considered taboo in some parts of Kenya, rich families appear to embrace it as an alternative to burial.
In 2018, the body of former Cabinet Minister and Second Liberation icon Kenneth Matiba was cremated in a guarded send-off at Lang’ata Crematorium.
Nobel laureate Wangari Maathai was cremated in 2011 in a private ceremony at the Kariokor crematorium after passing on at the Nairobi Hospital after a long fight with ovarian cancer.
John Macharia, the son of Royal Media Services founder SK Macharia, was cremated after dying in a road accident along the Southern Bypass in Nairobi.
Former chairperson of the Maendeleo ya Wanawake Organization, Jane Kiano was also cremated on October 27, 2018, at the Kariokor crematorium two days after her death.
Former Anglican Archbishop Manasses Kuria was cremated in 2005, with a majority of church members voicing strong objections to the rite.
Also, Safaricom CEO Bob Collymore was interred at the Kariokor Hindu Crematorium. He passed away on July 1, 2019, at his Nairobi home after a long battle with cancer.