Muthoni wa Kirima, a field marshal, has spoken out about why she asked Mama Ngina Kenyatta to shave her 70-year-old dreadlocks.
The 91-year-old Mau Mau veteran revealed that she agreed to have her hair shaved, adding unequivocally that she thought it was an important time for a makeover.
“I had to cut it because it has been a long journey. I started keeping this hair in 1952 and after more than 70 years, I needed to get rid of them. I now feel like a young girl,” Field marshal Muthoni stated.
Muthoni, who is always up for a good laugh, went on to say that anyone who tried to chop her hair without her permission would have been faced with blows and kicks.
“Nobody can shave my hair without my consent. If they attempted to do so, I would have given them a proper beating,” she stated, easing dissent that had arisen after the significant move.
Muthoni continued by stating that she shaved her head to show that Kenya has finally achieved full independence.
She explained that keeping her dreadlocks had taken a lot of perseverance, and that it was a reminder of what she had gone through during colonial control.
“Dreadlocks were the hairstyle associated with the Mau Mau while fighting in the forest as they barely had time to properly groom their hair, making it to lock,” Muthoni concluded
