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Since they took charge, crime in Murang'a District has decreased
A couple of years ago, a facilitator at a seminar on gender issues asked participants to imagine what life would be like if they woke up one morning and found the country being run exclusively by women. The seminar was in Murang�a District, where the legendary Wangu wa Makeri ruled as a chief in the colonial era.
There were two distinct lines of thinking: most of the men dreaded the thought while the women, though supportive of the idea, noted that women leaders would find their new roles very challenging due to deeply rooted social practices.
Interestingly, Murang'a today probably has the largest number of women holding senior positions in any district in the country.
Topping the list are district commissioner Mrs Anne Ng'etich, the officer commanding police division (OCPD) Mrs Rose Mbae, and the head of the local criminal investigations department, Mrs Jacinta Muthoni M�ribu. The three, together with Superintendent James Haroun Macharia, form the Murang�a District security team.
To their great credit, Ng'etich, Mbae and M'ribu have managed a notable reduction in crime in the area. Teamwork, says Ng'etich, is the key to their success. However, the three women's first major job as security committee members last year proved to be a baptism of fire, after four members of a vigilante group were brutally murdered in Gitige village in Kiharu Division. The villagers wanted the government to do something, and fast. It was Mbae who went to the scene of the killings and consoled the bereaved families on behalf of the district security committee.
Under immense pressure, Ng'etich, Mbae and M'ribu proved their worth, spearheading investigations into the killings, which led to the arrest of several suspects, who have since been arraigned in court.
The three agree that that has been their most trying case so far. But their handling of the incident earned them great respect from residents of Murang'a, many of whom had been sceptical about their ability to lead.
Besides the three, other women who hold high positions in Murang'a are District Co-operative Officer Mrs Esther Muiruri, Senior Principal Magistrate Felista Fatuma Wanjiku and District Cultural Officer Ms Collie Mutua. At the Lands office, Ms Jecinta Mbithe is the Physical Planning Officer, while Mary Wokabi heads Kenya Industrial Estates in the area. The district also has one woman chief and five women assistant chiefs.
Indeed, this very scenario that male participants at the seminar two years ago dreaded. But many people in the area now seem to believe that women are better leaders than men because they care more about human life.
Says Mr Pharis Chege. "There used to be a lot of crime here but these women have managed to reverse the trend."
But it is difficult work. "When I was posted here I was apprehensive because I had heard a lot about Murang�a and knew it as a very volatile district. But I took time to study the general environment, and listened to the wishes and aspirations of the people, says Ng'etich.
Asked how she has managed to steer the district security team so successfully, Ng'etich responds: "The fact that we are women does not mean we cannot tackle criminals � I believe, and I am sure, we have managed through the help of God.
Their success has changed many local people's perception of women. "You have to be extra careful when your boss is a woman, especially in regard to security matters," is now a common warning in the area.
Ng'etich says that the challenges she is facing in Murang'a are very different from those in her former station, Machakos, Ng'etich says: "You cannot compare Murang�a and Machakos because the problems of the two areas are not identical. Furthermore, she says, poverty is only just creeping into Murang'a.
The people of Murang'a, she says, are not used to the high poverty levels they are now experiencing and the only way out is to revitalise the economy, which is being tackled by the government at the policy level.
Her priority now, she says, is helping the people of Murang'a solve their problems. "Being a DC is very challenging but the bottom line is what happens between the four walls of this office � how I respond to the calls I receive, correspondence with the public and the way I am rated by the people I serve. If you come to my office and I am unable to assist you, then something must be wrong somewhere.
Mbae, for her part, says her transfer to Murang'a came at a time when the situation was very tense because of the Gitige village murders.
"I knew Murang�a as the home of very many hardened criminals, but having gone through the ranks of the police force, I knew I was even tougher and I think the three of us have managed to do our best.
"The secret behind our success, especially in crime busting, is teamwork. We have to work with everybody and we take any information we receive very seriously.
M'ribu, like her colleagues, found the initial days in Murang'a difficult. She recalls how she spent nights out in the cold with her male colleagues hunting for criminals. "But thank God that these days we can get some sleep," she says.
"Those days my mobile phone, land line and the hotline would all be ringing to inform me about some crime having been committed somewhere.
She acknowledges that many people are terrified of her unit, but also points out that she is heavily dependent on information from the public. "If you find a person who fears us, there must be something wrong with that person.
When she was posted to Murang'a, M'ribu knew that she had a tough job on her hands because this was the home of some of the country's most wanted criminals, like Bernard Matheri. But she was not apprehensive. Rather, she looked forward to the challenge.
"Having been in this unit for long, I wanted to come here and prove that women too can tackle hardened criminals. And we have, with the assistance of other forces, have managed to keep these elements in check.
On the political scene, one of the women who has made her presence felt is Teresia Wanjiru Kiura, who is serving her second term as councillor. Kiura attributes her popularity to her diligence. "I was re-elected because I work hard for my people, she says.
KIE's Wokabi is encouraged that there are many women around her in positions of authority. "I like it that way." And she is determined to turn the KIE around and restore its lost glory.
"We need to make this district better than we found it. "I think we should form a working club since we have a common vision and mission in this district. | 
