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| The Life and Times of a Neglected British Goodwill Ambassador in Kenya and Abroad |
 PRINTABLE VERSION |
Born 79 years ago in Kisumu Kadongo of Kisumu Rural Constituency, Kenya, Mr. Boniface Achieng’ Nyambega is a widely traveled man. Today, on a street, being guided by his young son or friend due to his blindness, he would pass for an ordinary old man going about his daily affairs until you get to know him better. In his diplomatic Chef career, he has met Queen Elizabeth; interacted with Lord Malcolm Blundell, Lord Cavendish, Lord Havelock, as well as Sir Dennis Pritt, among other dignitaries. These are senior British colonial era officers who even today still command a lot of respect and influence. Queen Elizabeth is the current head of the British Royal family.
Mr. Achieng’s career has also seen him work under various British officers and diplomats in Kenya. For a Chef whose sumptuous products have been sampled and liked by among others, Princess Anne, Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth, Mr. Achieng is first among many equals. His illustrious culinary career spanning over forty years inspires many with awe. Given time, he would go on and on about his profession, the indications of a man who loved and was dedicated to his job.
His life as a youth was lived in business. They traded in fish from Lake Tanganyika, a fresh water lake in Tanzania. They would then transport the fish to Mombasa to supply beach hotels and retailers. That was in the early part of the 1940s. In 1947, he went to Nairobi in search of employment. Recruitment by the colonial labor officers, who included one Alfonse Ndege, Daudi Osomo and a Mr. Dwasi. They saw him being taken to work as the Chef for Mr. Harry (H.H.) Frere, a British colonial labor officer, albeit of seniority to the three Africans.
He was to stay with Harry Frere until 1948, when Mr. Frere went to Zimbabwe to live with his uncle, the then British colonial Governor in Zimbabwe (then Northern Rhodesia). At Mr. Frere’s, Mr. Achieng’s workmate was one Mohamed Onyango ja Ugenya Ligega-Masiro who, he says is presently plying his trade in Italy as a Chef.
The 1948 departure of Mr. Frere, saw Mr. Achieng’ moving to Kenyan coastal city of Mombasa where for nine months, he worked at the Country Family and Hotel as the Chief Chef with among others, a Mr. Abdalla. Soon 1949 arrived and the agile young man in his early twenties shifted to a Mackinnon Road hotel in the city, working there between the months of August and November. Later on, he was to join a British Army Major called Tolbert as his Chef for one year. Come 1951, he felt that he had done enough and thus needed to start a family.
Thus on the 3rd September 1951, he got married to Miss Mariah Adero from Seme Kolunje in Kisumu District’s Kombewa Division. The pompous wedding took place at the Kibuye Catholic Church in Kisumu City, and was attended by the high and mighty. Eight months later, he was back in Mombasa, where he stayed for another five months.
In February 1952, in the pursuit of his career, the aspiring young man was employed by a British colonial police officer by the name of ‘Hill-Manger’ in Nyeri, central Kenya. He remembers the police officer as a strict disciplinarian who had two children. That was the same year that Queen Elizabeth, then a Princess, came to Kenya on a tour. Mr. Achieng was invited to the State House in Nairobi, where as the Chef he served the Queen for three consecutive days.
Later on, while the Queen stayed at a country hotel in Nyeri, the news of King George’s sudden demise was brought, forcing her to end her trip abruptly and go back home to England. This was the same period when Paramount Chief Yonah Orao, the grandfather to the embattled former Nakuru District Commissioner, Jonah Anguka, also passed on. The tumultuous period also saw a State of Emergency being declared in the country, and the arrest of the President of Kenya, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, on October 30th.
Mr. Achieng' says that the period marked a tormenting moment in the lives of Africans. Many were killed by the colonial officers for collaborating with the Mau Mau freedom fighters. Several others were also killed by the Mau Mau for collaborating with the British colonial officers. Many of the uncooperative Africans were subjected to hard labor and confinement by some of the colonial officers. He vividly remembers one physician, a Dr. Ouko, then practicing in Nyeri, as a beacon of hope for many of the Africans. The kind doctor helped many of them by hiding them from harsh colonial officers and giving them food, as well as other provisions.
During the same year of 1952, Mr. Achieng' went home on short leave. The British Colonial Governor in Kenya, Sir Evelyn Baring was to come to Kisumu City on October 13th as the Chief Guest during the opening of the Aga Khan Hospital in the town. Mr. Achieng’ was once again called up to go and unleash his culinary skills, as the Chief Chef of the Ceremony. He successfully served the delighted Governor and other important guests at the event. The occasion had also doubled up as a short tour of the region for the Governor. His recollection still intact on British issues, Mr. Achieng’ says that earlier in the month of September, Prince Andrew had been born.
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Antony Felix O. Simbowo
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