Reports Leo Odera Omolo.

The cruel hand of death of Ambassador Michael George Okeyo has robbed the Rusinga Island’s community in particular and Kenya in general a highly valued individual personality who was a man of great value to the Kenyan society.

A career diplomat Okeyo was born on July 27,1939 at Kaswanga village in what is today called Rusinga West Location, Mbita district within Homa-Bay County.

He was born in a staunch Christian family and pioneer member of the SDA church of the late Mzee Zephania Owuor Ong’udi and Mama Philidah Nyengo who was the daughter of Pastor Johana Onyango of Kakimba in Mfangano Island.

Pastor Onyango was also the father of the late Senator Selemiah Mbeo-Oynango who in 1962 was elected to represent South Nyanza district in the tri-cameral parliament as the member of the Senate.Mbeo-Oyango was later to become the first Mbita MP in 1966 during its inception after the abolition of the Senate and Regional Assemblies under the 1962 “Majimbo Costitution” of the Lancaster House.

Mbita was curved out of the original Lambwe constituency which was later renamed Ndhiwa.Senator Mbeoi-Onyango is also the father of Ochieng’Mbeo who in 1992 won the Mathari parliamentary seat in Nairobi and later become Kenya’s representative to the East African Legislative Assembly in Arusha.

Ambassador Okeyo took his early education at Kaswanga Primary School where he passed his KAPE with flying colors and later joined Kisi high School in the late 1950s.Being close to the late Tom Mboya also a fellow Rusinga man, Okeyo was among bunch of Kenyans who proceeded to the United States for higher education. He was admitted to Berkeley University, Carlifonia where he graduated with bachelor and master’s degrees.

He worked briefly with the International Monetary Fund {IMF} Washington D.C. before returning home in Kenya and joined the civil service in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Relations. He later studied and obtained diploma in international diplomacy at the University of Ursula in Sweden and obtained another similar diploma from the University of Nairobi. During his long and rewarding career with the Foreign Ministry he was posted to several Kenyan missions abroad before being appointed Kenya’s Permanent Representative to the UN in New York.

He was finally recalled back home and appointed the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Labor and later to the Ministry of Minerals and Natural Resources from where he retired.

During his youth Ambassador Okeyo was an excellent footballer. On several occasions he and this writer turned up for Rusinga location football team during the annual festivities organized by the Low Land Association whose founder and Secretary General was the late Tom Mboya. The football matches were usually played at Sindo Trading Centre in Kaksingiri Location. The games involved the teams from the five original Low Land locations of Gembe, Gwassi, Kaksingiri, Mfangano and Rusinga Islands.

Ambassador Okeyo because of his hard volleys {Dabal} which were sending most goal-keepers panicking while other packing, especially his specialty the free-kicks outside the box earned him a nick name “Okeyo Atiu.”The Rusinga team had always come on the top of the rest. On occasions Okeyo and this writer were invited to play for the Rusinga community team in Kampala Uganda, under what was then commonly known as “Luo Majimbo League” involving teams from all Luo Locations in Nyanza and the Rusinga team had always inspired by Okeyo and came on top of the rest.

The Ambassador has battled with the bout of kidney ailment, which for a long time made him uncomfortable with a lot of pains bravely born out.

A gentleman who wore the smiling face all the time Ambassador Okey left behind two wives Deborah Ayah Okeyo and Prof Acholla Pala. He was blessed with nine children, but three of them have passed away leaving only six children all grown ups.

He will be laid to rest at his father’s rural home in Kaswanga village on Rusinga Island West Location on Sunday 16thg October, May Our Almighty God rest his soul in eternal peace.

Ends

ABOUT THE AUTHOR. Leo Odera Omolo aged 74 years is a veteran Kenyan journalist living on semi-retirement, but currently operating as a freelance writer in Kisumu and parts of Western Kenya and also across the border into Tanzania and Uganda. He was born in Rusinga Island, but currently a resident of Awendo.