When will John Michuki clear his name from constant allegations that our Internal Security minister is one of the political godfathers of Mungiki? Who has forgotten Ndura Waruinge's not so idle boast that he was prepared to revert back to his notorious "tactics" of yesteryear? Is Chris Murungaru one of the other benefactors of Mungiki? How about Uhuru Kenyatta? Why this resurgence of Mungiki associated public carnage in yet another election year?

Having said that, let me reiterate what I said in the year 2002 about Mungiki:

You cannot hope to "crush" Mungiki using violent repressive tactics. What you end up doing in recycling the vicious ritual of bloody feuds, attack and counter attacks.

There is one thing I agree with both Njenga Karume and Koigi wa Wamwere about:

Someone has to sit down and negotiate with Mungiki if one hopes to stem the tide of bloody confrontations linked to the sect.

Last December I was invited by some Mathare youth to moderate a public panel/forum on the killings in that sprawling informal urban settlement-or network of settlements. The meeting took place on a Friday at the Professional Centre and the room we were using was chock full- of mothers and nephews, community leaders, disability rights activists, youth campaigners, civic aspirants and well known personalities like Ambassador Bethwell Kiplagat, feminist political activist Philo Ikonya and others. The television cameras, radio microphones and newspaper photographers and scribes were on hand to record everything. Given the charged nature of the topic and the way the media pointed the finger of blame at Mungiki, one expected a bashing session on the banned sect.

What ensued however was something very different. A sixty something Luo grandmother stood up and defended Mungiki, applauding members of the group for enforcing a Law and Order regime in Mathare. She meant that after years of being harassed by the corrupt askaris from Kasarani police station the youngsters from Mungiki worked hard to rid her neighbourhood of petty felons and operating public toilets and providing electricity services (never mind the fact that the Kenya Power and Lighting Company has not yet outsourced any of its services to Mungiki). She had no problem dishing out the protection money demanded by the group. A Luo youth said his only problem with Mungiki is that they did not recruit from outside the Agikuyu.

Now mark you, I hold no brief for the criminal activities like murder, robbery with violence, female genital mutilation, arson and a whole slew of illegal things that members of Mungiki have been accused of.

The fact of the matter is that Mungiki is in fact, a very powerful social movement in this country with all its retrograde elements. It has thousands of members and followers in Nairobi, all over Central Kenya and in pockets of the Rift Valley.

It is also uncontested that the leadership of Mungiki has used the above strength of the sect to approach mainstream politicians from Moi to members of Kibaki's cabinet in cutting essentially financial and commercial deals whereby Mungiki act as storm troopers in return for political favours- as in 2002 and 2006 where members of the movement marched down the streets of Nairobi chanting pro-government slogans.

It is in the public domain that Mungiki owns property in such swanky neighbourhoods as Karen and Kitengela. Obviously the rank and file of the movement is NOT calling the shots in these real estate deals.

If it is also true that Mungiki's membership extends to President Kibaki's cabinet and even security forces, then surely Mungiki is not some rag tag tribal ghetto outfit that can be stamped out by a few rungu wielding lukurus from the gicagi.

President Kibaki should immediately appoint Ambassador Bethwell Kiplagat to set up face to face meetings with the Mungiki leadership, which may or may not include John Michuki and Njenga Karume to seek proactive dialogue.

Those criminal acts perpetrated by people purported to be Mungiki should be dealt with using our existing laws.

In doing all this, due process must be followed. Tribal profiling of Agikuyu youth should cease forthwith. Those hordes of youth overflowing over at Industrial Area Remand Home and other prisons and police cells should be released immediately if they are innocent.

Some people are horrified at some of my suggestions, especially on the call for the Kenya government to sit down and talk with the leaders of Mungiki.

I do not see what the big deal is.

If Kibaki can reappoint one of the chief architects of Goldenberg back to his government; if Kombo can ignore a court ruling and push through his quisling to become Mombasa mayor; if Michuki can campaign for a pro-government Marsabit candidate using a GoK aircraft, then surely they can sit down and talk to members of Mungiki.

In ending, I want to make an URGENT call to all Kenyan human rights activists and social justice defenders to be more vigilant and speak out more at the spiraling cases of state thuggery and terror- whether it is colluding with the FBI and CIA to abduct Kenyan nationals and ship them off to Guantanamo Bay or harassing innocent Kenyan youth just because they happen to be working class or slum dwelling Agikuyu youth.

If we are not vigilant we will end up on the same side as the LSK when it calls for a state of emergency.

This article was originally published on the Jukwaa forum.