By Investigative Team
A university don bore the full brunt of the thanksgiving prayer for Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) National Chairperson Gladys Wanga at Ligisa Secondary School in Kochia, Homa Bay County.
Wanga, who is the Governor of Homa Bay County, hails from Kochia village, a few kilometres away from the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University don’s home.
Professor G.Z.O. Nyotumba claimed that the Homa Bay County Government decided to open a new route to be used by Raila Odinga and other guests during the thanksgiving prayers for Wanga after she was appointed the party chairperson.
In a message shared in the Lake Land Development WhatsApp group, Nyotumba lamented and described the action by the governor and her administration as cruel and inhuman. “This is the damage that was done to my land in Kochia by Gladys Wanga in an operation personally supervised by Bernard Nyobange and a surveyor called Byron from Homa Bay County Government”. They said they were clearing the way for Raila to attend Gladys’ homecoming at Ligisa School.
The land was ringed by a 10-foot 6mm angle line pillared fence with heavy-duty chain link reinforced with barbed wire. While for most of the stretch from the junction of Nyagoro Chief’s Camp/Owili Ongei Homestead, the 6-metre provision was maintained, when her bulldozers and graders reached my parcel, they left neighbours’ fences intact and moved it to my fence 11 metres,”** Nyotumba alleged.
Attempts to contact Governor Wanga and the County Chief Officer for Public Communication, Ms Atieno Otieno, bore no fruit, as they did not respond to texts or phone calls. Similarly, we were unable to obtain a comment from Nyobange, as he did not reply to our texts.
Members of the WhatsApp platform expressed disappointment, with some claiming the issue could stem from long-standing differences between the parties involved, requiring a quick solution to prevent further escalation.
Others urged the don to seek legal redress for damages and compensation. “I don’t think we should be spectators. The best advice you should give him is to report the matter to the police. I am glad that he has documented the violations. Any civilised community should not tolerate such inhumanity,” wrote Onyango Odak, a diaspora-based Kenyan in the United States of America.
