Makmende craze sweeps the Internet

[Adapted From Daily Nation 24/03/2010]

Don’t Google Makmende, Google is still searching for Makmende. The world is not ending because Makmende killed The Antichrist. Barack Obama has just one referee on his CV — Makmende. Michael Joseph of Safaricom gets “okoa jahazi” from Makmende. When Makmende was a mono, the school principle used to wash his clothes. Only makmende can pocket when he is naked. Makmende once visited the British Virgin Islands. They are now known just as the British Islands…. Makmende eats steak for every single meal; Most times he forgets to kill the cow. Makmende is ODM damu.

These are just some of the one-line phrases that have dominated the Internet over the last two weeks as Kenyans compete to come up with the most fantastic claims about Makmende.

The Makmende phenomenon has hit in a big way on social sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Some users have added the name Makmende to their own identities. The mystery character described as Kenya’s first viral super hero has even found a place on Wikipedia, the free online encyclopaedia.

Makmende has a website (www.makmende.com) that is arguably one of the most visited by Kenyan Internet users, and clearly the fastest growing fan base on Facebook and Twitter. The biggest accolade night be that within the past fortnight, as the phenomenon has exploded, anti-Makmende pages have come up on the Internet.

So, who is this Makmende and why all the hype? Makmende.com describes him as “your super hero’s super hero”. The latest phenomenon has however been ignited by a video to the song Ha-He by a group going by the name Just A Band. Makmende is a mean and fierce fictional character in the 1970s themed video and played by Kevin “K1” Maina.

Kidnapped girl

In the video, Makmende not only beats up the estate bully but also saves a kidnapped girl from a gang of four men. Makmende cannot be outpaced by those he is chasing and does not even smile in the entire video.

Makmende is however not a new name in the mouths of Kenyans. It was a name used to describe someone, especially boys, who was feeling like a super hero and had the urge to display their skills, which were often borrowed from movies.

One blogger, Archer, (mwanamishale.wordpress.com )explains: “Makmende was a term used way back in the early to mid 1990s to refer to someone who thought he was a super hero. For example, if a boy who had watched one too many kung-fu movies on TV decided to unleash his newly acquired combat skills, he would be asked, “Unajidai Makmende, eh?” (Who do you think you are, Makmende?)!”

Get this Sunday’s Buzz for a one-on-one interview with Makmende.