This archive report was first published on 4 August 2019.
As I reflect on my time as a resident surgeon at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi, I recall a peculiar encounter with Kenya's first president, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, on October 5, 1961.
It was a significant moment, as Mzee Kenyatta was familiarizing himself with developments in the country after his release from detention in 1951.
As a newly-arrived resident surgeon, I was given the privilege of showing him around the hospital. I had never met him before but had read about his struggles in the Indian newspapers during my medical studies in Bombay.
During the tour, Mzee Kenyatta's Foreign Minister, Munyua Waiyaki, who was part of his retinue, recognized my fiancée, Marie, and reminded her of a warning he had given her in Dewsbury, England, a few years earlier.
Waiyaki had cautioned Marie against marrying me, citing my demanding work schedule as a surgeon. His warning had fallen on deaf ears, and Marie and I had gotten married in 1961.
As Mzee Kenyatta looked on, I retorted, 'Thank God your advice fell on deaf ears!' The encounter was a lighthearted moment amidst the weight of Kenya's transition to independence.
