MUKONYO

Run! Run! Run! A pride of lions is coming to devour our cows, sheep and goats! run for your dear lives! shouted Mukonyo! the village fibster.

Everyone in the village got into a frenzy, trying to save their domestic animals and their lives from the lions. Women running as fast as their thin legs would carry them and of course carrying their children on their backs and screaming on top of their voice! men trying to force the animals into their stables! it was a total commotion! everyone was on panic mode.

Then suddenly Mukonyo falls down laughing his head out! I wanted to see what you people can do incase of an emergency! of course there are no lions coming this way! he continued!

What do you mean Mukonyo? asked one of the village elders?

when will you stop playing pranks on innocent people?

Aaah! its just a small joke! he shouted back running because all the villagers were angry at him and some carried stones ready to stone him for making them run like mad dogs!

Mukonyo always used to come up with all sorts of lies.

another time, he acted dead! Help! Help! Help! screamed Mwende on top of her voice! someone has killed my beloved husband! Mwende was Mukonyo's wife who also used to fall to her husband's pranks. Mukonyo's body lay in a pool of supposedly blood! All villagers gathered at Mukonyo's homestead, sympathizing with Mwende on the lose of her husband. This time round everyone believed that finally Mukonyo has hit the basket. so it happened as the village elder was checking on Mukonyo's pulse, Mukonyo turned and started laughing out aloud! he had poured on himself red dye which actually looked like the real blood!. The villagers started moving out of Mukonyo's homestead shaking their heads in debrief and anger. Some were head saying, Mukonyo now has gone too far with his pranks! and most of them vowed to never again listen to what Mukonyo would tell them.

It was agreed by the whole village that they should have an open meeting and give Mukonyo a warning because now he's pranks were too much! The area chief called Mukonyo and summoned him to attend the said meeting without failure. Of which he agreed without asking any questions because he knew that people were tired of him.

on the eve of the arranged meeting, Mukonyo came running at night screaming on top of his voice! Help! Help! Help! the hyenas are chasing me! Please help me! am not lying! Help me please! He screamed for quite some time but nobody bothered to check or rather help him!

In the morning, the villagers were awaken by the rude shock of finding Mukonyo's mutilated body lying helplessly dead on the entrance of the village gate! the hyenas had devoured him in a very horrifying way!, Both his limbs were missing! no one could tell that this was a human body! save that one could see Mukonyo's green shorts which were his signature. Everyone was in shock! they all heard he's cries for help but nobody bothered even to look out of their huts because they were used of Mukonyo's lies and pranks!, but only little did they know that this time round he was not laying a prank on anyone but was telling the truth!

The village elder gathered all the people around and invited the area chief to give a cautionary message to the entire community.

It is very sad indeed that we have lost one of our villagers in the hands of wild animals and the worst part is that even though everyone heard Mukonyo's cries for help no-one dared to go and rescue him! Said the Chief almost shouting! Do you know why? He asked in a sarcastic manner! Why did everyone choose to ignore Mukonyo's calls for help? He asked again!

A very young child, probably at tens years of age, stood up from where he was seating and shouted, yes I know why everyone ignored Mukonyo!

Everyone turned to look at him in dismay!

He's mother tried to pulled the boy down, please Kasee!, don't answer back to the chief when he is talking!

But it was already too late! the chief had already heard what the young boy had said.

Please come here! the chief called on the boy to join him in front of the villagers.

Tell us? why did everyone ignore Mukonyo's calls for help? the chief asked the young boy?

It is because Mukonyo used to tell lies! said the boy shyly... He always liked to cheat and prank people, added Kasee! One day, he found me in the field with my parent's sheep, Mukonyo cheated me that a wild beast was behind the bush, which prompted me to run away and leave the sheep alone to an extend that I lost one sheep of which my father gave me a proper beating! Since that day, I never believed anything Mukonyo said, concluded Kasee!

Everyone gave Kasee a applaud and a standing ovation! women could be heard murmuring! how can a young boy like this talk sense!

The chief said, you have all heard what this little boy has said, of which it is very true!

Let this be a lesson to all of you! Be cautious to everything you do and tell others! the chief stressed! On a sad note, Mukonyo is dead! but he died out of his own game! Had Mukonyo been true to everyone, then when he called for help, he would have been rescued! but since, he liked or rather enjoyed pranking people and telling lies, then when he called out for help, people thought that he was still pranking them but this time round he was telling the truth! said the chief!

The chief continued saying " you reap what you sow". Please let's all be our brothers keepers, by helping each other and always being true and considerate to one another, loving one another as if you belong to one family. The chief concluded.

Everyone applauded him and the meeting was called off so as to start the burial preparation for the fallen village fibster, the late Mukonyo.