Back to Nagunda, where King Mukayo fights on

 There is an epic war with the submerged kingdom of Talokan, led by the fierce mutant warrior Namor. Wakanda wins, but by the skin of its teeth. It’s left in ruins, and its leadership is uncertain. A chastened Namor returns to the waters, waiting for history to gift him another crack at Wakanda. People saw parallels with Nagunda. Nagunda is a nation with a large army, sitting on 42 hills, with fertile lands, many of whose citizens are poor despite its riches. Nagunda’s ruler is the enduring warrior King Mukayo.  Nagunda was once a deeply troubled kingdom. For some years, Mukayo gave it some stability, but the last 15 years of his very long rule have been turbulent. To keep his power and secure the kingdom, Mukayo set up three guards; the Lejaleja Rifles, the Tokanga Musketeers, and the elite Zinkwa Samurai.

 In July, the kingdom was awash with rumours of some sections of these forces plotting with the peasants and workers in the hills against Mukayo. The situation has got worse. Prince Rugaboozi, once considered a sure shoo-in to succeed Mukayo and who enjoys support among the Tokanga Musketeers and Zinkwa Samurai, is in open rebellion against the king. This was after Mukayo pressured the Wanzikya High Council to vote against a resolution that he should relinquish the throne to a younger prince or general.

 Reliable sources tell your correspondent that Mukayo is now purging, especially the Zinkwa Samurai to weaken Prince Rugaboozi before cutting off his political legs at the knees.  An influential palace source, who I met in a darkened kafunda in one of the suburbs of Lapa, the Nagunda capital, told me Mukayo might look besieged, but it would be a mistake to underestimate him.  For one, he said Mukayo had successfully propped up other princes, most notably Prince Edukuru and Prince Bogode – and the low-key Viscount Mbazima - and strengthened their claim to the throne. “Rugaboozi is no longer alone, and with Edukuru and Bogode in the race, they are now jostling among themselves, allowing Mukayo to rebuild his defences and create new alliances. Mukayo will win the Renewal in five years and remain the king”, he said. He said Mukayo withdrew the elite guard from the Gatonga Pass, the critical strategic corridor into Lapa, allowing “traitors” in the kingdom to bring their forces into the capital. He said that he knew where these forces were and would cut their heads off in a coming purge. Most intriguing is what he said King Mukayo does at night. He said the king had re-read Wole Soyinka’s play “The Lion and the Jewel” many times. “I think he is inspired by the fact that the older and traditional Baroka defeats the modernising and young Lakunle for beautiful Sidi’s hand”, he said.

 “Every three days, he also watches ‘The Woman King’, about the Dahomey kingdom’s 1800s all-female conquering army, the Agoje.

“The thing about that is that Agoje’s Gen Nanisca (Viola Davis) is the oldest warrior, and she also gets to train and define what the next generation of the army and leadership will be. She doesn’t face the challenges that Mukayo, who is jealous about his fighting credentials, is facing from rebel princes”, he said.

 “For reasons that I imagine are mostly geopolitical, he is also watching ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”, he said.

 “The premise of the film is problematic for him because it shows the passing of a king, the turmoil that foils, and ends with a not-so-subtle signal that in the third instalment, we will see a transition to a very young generation”, he noted.

 “I can only imagine that he sees the successful rapprochement with the Jabari, who fight on Wakanda’s side, and an uneasy settlement with the Talokan, which left Namor as a potential ally, as things that mirror his own favourable regional repositioning”, he said.  Mukayo rests more easily these days but still takes added precautions. These days, he sleeps with an AK47 rifle beside his bed, and after locking the bedroom door, he also pulls a sofa and anchors it under the handle.

“It’s hard to get the drop on the king”, he said, raising his hands in a resigned gesture.

Mr Onyango-Obbo is a journalist, writer and curator of the “Wall of Great Africans”

Twitter@cobbo3