By Anderson Ojwang
Uriri MP Mark Nyamita has blended technology with comedy for political satire on the Migori Governor, Ochilo Ayacko, and put him on check over his service delivery.
The application of the two weapons to dismantle Ayacko has irked the governor, who, in a recent interview, used harsh adjectives to describe his competitor for the seat in the 2027 elections.
Nyamita, combining humour, satire, technology and comedy to blend his speeches, has left the audience in stitches as his messages sink deep into the electorate and bite on the image of the governor.
Nyamita’s use of symbolism and juxtapositions to deconstruct the governor is tormenting and wreaking havoc in the Migori gubernatorial campaigns.
The Uriri MP has gone ahead to christen the governor Oyundi, a bird known for its laziness but love for food without working.
He has also used Ayacko’s found story of the line of Luo and Kalenjin lineage of Sinakuru Ma Dogman that explains the ancestry and the relationship of the two Nilotic communities.
But Ayacko is not also laying low and has nicknamed Nyamita as Othuogo because of his height and Chiwawa, the noisy pet dog known for barking loudest but cannot bite.
In a recent interview, Ayacko said ‘I have opponents. I have studied them, most of them are charlatans, propagandists. You know propaganda has a short life span. There is one member from a place called Uriri, who is a charlatan, sloganeer and a comedian,” he said.
Ayacko described Nyamita as a comedian who only entertains the audience and cannot win the gubernatorial elections.
“People laugh at his light comments but he will never show his track record that he is better than me. He will never have credentials that are better than mine. I am confident that one is an opponent like all we must have, but I am not worried about their behaviour. My record makes me confident, my experience makes me confident, and the fact is my dedication to serving my people is actual,” he said.
Ayacko said Nyamita should not be taken seriously and described him as a joker and entertainer.
“Mark Nyamita is somebody who should not be taken seriously by people who are serious. He is a charlatan, an entertainer and a joker. His sloganeers don’t operate within the political ethics. He is one person when ODM was done, he walked out in pursuit of personal benefit and wasn’t apologetic about it,” he said.
But Nyamita responded by accepting the nickname, saying it aptly captures his behaviour and nature.
“He has nicknamed Chiwawa, a name I have graciously accepted because it is a description of me. Chiwawa is a house dog and not a fighting dog, which describes me because I don’t fight. I don’t believe in physical fight. My dog will smell you from far, bark and warn me. That is what I exactly I am doing to the people of Migori, warning them over poor service delivery by the governor,” he said.
But following Ayacko’s recent interview and attack, Nyamita has gone ahead to cause more laughter by his response that has painted the governor negatively.
“Ayacko, you say I am crying, yes, because there are no drugs and roads. There are no services in the county. Ochilo bye,” he said.
Comedy
Migori County for decades was known as the mother and father of political violence and thuggery. The language best and most spoken in the county was violence.
Bloodbath and political deaths were the order of the day and never became news. It was normalised.
Political events were punctuated by violence and thuggery. Goons ran havoc and nearly all the political gatherings were disrupted.
Even the Orange Democratic Movement then party leader, the late Raila Amolo Odinga, was not spared. The respect was thrown out through the window.
Ayacko and former Cabinet Minister, the late Dalmas Otieno Anyango, during the battle for Rongo Constituency turned the area into Darfur, a war zone.
Ayacko and the immediate former Governor Okoth Obado were often embroiled in running battles.
But with the exit of Obado, the political violence and thuggery was to be between Ayacko and Suna West MP Peter Masara, who is also eyeing the gubernatorial seat.
Ayacko-Masara battle
Earlier in the year, after three years of calm, two days of political violence rocked Migori town following Ayacko and Masara engaging in a superiority battle.
At a funeral in the area, Ayacko got a dose of his own medicine and was forced to seek protection from the police station after chaos descended at the funeral they both attended.
At the funeral, Ochillo and Masara fought over protocol, with the latter demanding that he speak first before inviting the governor to speak.
Commotion broke out over the tussle on who should speak first and the tussle over the microphone, forcing the mourners to flee and police to intervene.
Ochilo later went to report the incident at a local police station and accused area Masara of allegedly orchestrating violence against him at the funeral.
Both Ochillo and Masara recorded statements with the police over the violence, with the County Police Boss Samwel Boit saying the fracas began over a confrontation about who should speak first.
“The chaos broke out over who should speak first at the funeral and when Masara attempted to take the microphone from Ochillo, violence broke out,” he said.
‘Ochillo blamed Masara for the chaos and asked him to campaign in peace instead of engaging in violence.
“I got the opportunity to condole with the family but the area MP came and created chaos. He allegedly brought 500 youths and they were armed with crude weapons. But as a governor who is peace-loving, I opted not to engage in political violence.”
But Masara denied, instead accusing Ochillo of getting police protection to intimidate his opponents.
“When the governor arrived and before he could even stay for 20 minutes, he took over the microphone that he wants to invite me to speak in my constituency. That is not protocol. The protocol requires that I am the one to invite him and not vice versa. I am the one to invite him in my constituency. He went for police reinforcement from Migori Central Police Station and four Land Cruisers carrying officers were brought to the funeral, but they only protected Ochilo.”
Comedy
Nyamita has changed the chapter of Migori politics when he ventured into comedy and technology-laced politics.
The use of symbolism in their speeches and figures of speech became the political engagement, and violence took the back stage.
Nyamita said “Ayacko recently called me Chiwawa. Chiwawa is an alert dog. And that is why I am alerting you of corruption cases. Ayacko is a German Shepherd because he is used to pangas and violence,”.
The bye moment
Nyamita has developed a political phrase and salutation that is gaining popularity with the electorate and audience.
In his new phrase, Nyamita engages the audience to wave bye to Ayacko in 2027.
In the phrase, Nyamita says Ochilo Ayacko bye and the audience responds with a wave saying bye, and the salutation is concluded with a catchy statement dhi dala koso odhi (going home or not going home)? and the crowd breaks out in laughter with a response, dhi dala (going home).
.The banter
The Nyamita and Ayacko banter has been on development, with each questioning one another’s performance.
