By Our Staff Reporter

DISCONTENT has gripped the small farming town of Awendo in Migori County with claims that the elected and appointed ODM Councillors have employed close to twenty workers from their own families and relatives.

Awendo district, like neighboring Rongo and Migori, are stroghold of the Orange Democratic Movement {ODM} but reports emerging from there are pointing out the worse type of neptism in terms of employment of its staff and workers.

The civic leaders, according to unimpeachable reports, have employed only their kith and kin in the services of the Council, some of whom are said to be semi-illiterate, but have been engaged at lucrative and influential positions, prompting a flurry of protests from the residents.

It is pointed out that one ODM party appointee, Councilor Better Ogutu Onyango, has employed her own jobless husband in the service of the Council. Another appointee, Councilor Odera Awene, who is the OIDM chairman in the area and has employed his two married daughters, now working as market clerks.

Leading the pack in practicing the worse nepotism is the Council Chairman Johnson Omolo Owiro, who has secured the employment of close to eight workers from his own family of Joka-Owiro in the Council. He is followed by Coun Obuya Gogo of Sakwa West Ward who has secured the employment of five of his relatives and friends.

Awendo, a small farming town within Awendo district in the Migori County, has very limited sources of revenue and depends entirely on the nearby SONYSUGAR Company with close to 2400 workers and few dukawallahs operative wholesale and retails shops as well as kiosk and bars operators. Its own revenue base alone cannot support large number of employees in terms of salary bills.

The residents have appealed to the Rongo MP Dalmas Otieno to intervene and ensure that employment of Council workers is distributed to the residents from within the town’s environs evenly, fairly and devoid of nepotism. Otieno is the Minister for Public Service in the grand coalition government.

The same appeal went to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Local Government, Hon Wycliff Musalia Mudavadi, who has been requested to send a team of investigators from the Ministry Headquarters.

Farmers and traders alike as well as the local residents are up in arms questioning the rationale exclusively employing only people connected with the blood to the elected and appointed Councilors. They are demanding that the issue must be addressed urgently and the number of relatives of the civic leaders’ current on the employment of the Council be radically scaled down.

A source in the Council confirmed the allegations, and wondered why this should happen during this period of transparency and accountability. “It is a big shame because the country is currently going through radical reform in line with the new constitutional dispensation,” said one local trader who requested for his anonymity.

The residents of Awendo and its environs are also demanding the replacement of ODM appointed Councilors who have shamelessly employed their kith and kin be revoked and the party be requested to submit other names for nominations.

This is a very pathetic and shameless act, which should be rectified with immediate effect and let the employment in the Awendo Town Council be free, open, and competitive. The council should not be used as a family entity, because it is a public utility., which is being maintained by the taxpayers money.

Ends.