Ministry of Environment on the Spot as Truphena Muthoni Alleges Lack of Support

Truphena Muthoni has accused the Ministry of Environment of failing to support her during her 72-hour tree-hugging marathon.

In an interview on Sunday, December 14, Muthoni said she sought different forms of support from the ministry while preparing for and undertaking the marathon but none was provided.

"When I was trying to achieve what I have already achieved, I did not get any support. I had requested support in different ways, but I did not get support from the Ministry of Environment. I requested accreditation support to go to COP 30, but I didn’t get it," she said.

Muthoni explained that although government backing was absent, her family played a key role in encouraging her, and she relied on intense mental and physical preparation to complete the challenge.

"My family is supportive, they are proud. Mostly it is mental exercise, I do physical exercises. I walk for 42km nonstop. I do many tree hugs, before I did this 72 hours, I had done 35 hours during Mazingira Day and I did 60 hours later on during a scouts’ camp.

"I do fasting. During the hugging, I was not taking water, but during the practice, I was taking a lot of water to prepare for those 3 days. I never had the urge to go to the bathroom, I control it from my mind," she added.

Muthoni also spoke about the physical conditions she faced during the marathon, including cold weather and rain, noting that prior practice helped her endure the experience.

"My arms didn’t get tired while I was hugging. I was feeling some cold when it started raining, but I was able to manage it because I had already practiced for that as well. There was a time I was rained on during practice. On the first day, it dried up on its own. 

"On the second day, it was really heavy, so I had some heaters around me. You can’t do that with people around you. I invite people to talk to me all the time because that makes my mind be active, or I’ll shut down," she explained.

Muthoni further shared details about her personal background and questioned the government’s environmental priorities, while acknowledging support from the Nyeri County government.

"I am in college, I am studying music. My ambition is to represent voices that are underrepresented. The government’s plan to plant 15 billion trees sounds overambitious; it depends on the motivation. 

"We should see that planting trees is important, but also if the government is pushing the directive of planting 15 billion trees, if it were real to me, I feel like we should not have issues of cutting down Karura Forest. I have not had support from the national government, but I have had support from the county government of Nyeri," she further said.

Elsewhere, Guinness World Records released a statement addressing Truphena Muthoni’s 72-hour tree-hugging attempt held this week.

In a statement on Friday, December 12, the organisation clarified that the verification process is still ongoing and that no new record has been confirmed yet.

Guinness World Records noted that while supporters are eagerly waiting for the outcome, the submitted evidence must first be reviewed.

"Truphena Muthoni's tree hugging record attempt this week in Kenya, inspired by "a deep-rooted passion for trees and the vital role they play in our ecosystem" has in turn inspired many comments on our social channels.

"We know Truphena's fans are excited to hear the results and we look forward to receiving and assessing the evidence. For now, her current record stands at 48 hours, achieved earlier this year in Nairobi," the organisation said.