International Press Lists Kitawaramba Among Top 10 Popular Words Of The Year Globally

• Kenyan-born "Kitakuramba" phrase found itself among the world's most popular words in 2023, as per Time, a US-based publisher
• The word came about around April 2023 when controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie used it to scare the state law enforcers who had detained him
• Leading to Mackenzie's tribulations at the hands of the law was his involvement in a religious cult in which hundreds of people in his church starved to death

Kai Eli, a journalist at TUKO.co.ke, brings over three years of experience covering politics and current affairs in Kenya.

The Kenyan social media sphere is known to be owned by vibrant users who tend to create a buzz out of an occurrence.

So powerful are the Kenyan netizens that they bullied former president Uhuru Kenyatta out of social media.

Any matter of national interest is always picked and pushed throughout social media, sometimes going beyond the borders.

The above has seen the local netizens occasionally take on their foreign counterparts in battles of banters and sometimes epithets.

How did "Kitawaramba" come up?

The might of Kenyan social media was recently felt once again when "Kitawaramba" was ranked among the most popular words in the world, as per the findings of a survey by the Associated Press.

The phrase was coined by controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie who was implicated in a massacre whose victims were faithful of the former's church.

Mackenzie was arrested and detained after hundreds of human bodies were discovered to have been buried in shallow graves in the Shakahola Forest, Kilifi county.

He had allegedly convinced his faithful to fast with the intent ofg meeting God; they started starving to death.

While in the police hands, the preacher was heard at one point warning them for arresting him.

He suggested he was God's servant and thus the law enforcers would face the wrath of his maker.

Video; Courtesy

Time, a US-based publication, found out that the word came about around April 2023 when controversial preacher Paul Mackenzie used it in warning the Kenyan state law enforces who had detained him.

"This was uttered by Kenyan pastor Paul Mackenzie, who was accused of leading a starvation doomsday cult that led to the deaths of more than 400 people. He said it as people confronted him while he waited to be driven to court. The unfamiliar word appeared to be a threat, and it quickly took on a life of its own. Kenyans used it to warn others that something bad may happen to them for their actions. The word captured the mood with the rising cost of living. With every new economic policy by President William Ruto’s administration, some Kenyans say the related term kimeturamba—that electing him has come back to haunt them," read the AP's finding on the phrase.

Meanwhile, Mackenzie of Good News International Church was recently jailed for one year after being found guilty of producing video content without a license.

The court had previously established that the preacher had a case to answer over his possession and distribution of film materials without the approval of the Kenya Films Classification Board (KFCB).

The count was among two others the controversial cleric was charged with, including inciting the public to disobey the law.

Mackenzie was accused of using the cinematographic films in his custody to incite children in his Good News International Church against attending school and Christians against other faiths like Hindus and Muslims.

Mackenzie sentenced

In the Friday, December 1 ruling, Malindi Senior Resident Magistrate Olga Onalo also slapped the cleric with a six-month jail term for showing the films to the public without an operating license.

Onalo dismissed Mackenzie's defence that he did not know there was a need for a license, adding that ignorance of the law is no defence.

"In respect to count two, I hereby sentence the accused person to twelve months imprisonment while in respect to count three, the accused person’s explanation of not knowing the need for a license from the KFCB having obtained a broadcasting one is a reasonable though not entirely acceptable as ignorance of the law is no defense hence the resulting conviction and in light of the same, I sentence the accused to six months imprisonment,” said Onalo.

The offences the Kilifi cult leader faced attracted a jail term of not more than a year and an alternative fine not exceeding KSh 100,000, but the Probation Officer in the case told the court to deny Mackenzie a fine.

What senators wanted from Paul Mackenzie

In the face of his many troubles, the preacher has been upbeat that he won't be found guilty of all the accusations on his name.

Last month, the Senate ad hoc committee probing the deaths recommended freezing Mackenzie's accounts.

The committee, under the stewardship of Tana River senator Danson Mungatana, wanted Cabinet Secretary for Interior and National Administration Kithure Kindiki, the Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and the Director of Public Prosecutions to take action within 90 days.

The lawmakers suggested that the proceeds in Mackenzie's accounts ought to be used to compensate the families of his victims.