From: Leo Odera Omolo
Date: Thu, Oct 1, 2009 at 8:30 AM
FIGHTING BROKE OUT AT A FUNERAL HOME IN NDHIWA AS POLITICIANS SQUABBLED OVER THE ESTABLISHMENT OF NEW WHITE SUGAR FACTORY IN THE AREA.
Writes Leo Odera Omolo In Homa-Bay.
Scores of mourners escaped with injuries they sustained following the outbreak of fist fighting and scuffles in a crowded funeral home in Ndhiwa district at the weekend.
The incident took place at Kamenya, South Kabuoch, Pala in Riana Division, Ndhiwa district.
It occurred during the burial of Ex-Councilor, Lawrence Ojwang, after a group of the seemingly enraged leaders, tried to eject out an ODM activist, Ms Monica Amolo, the self-styled coordinator of the party in the region, whom they accused of undermining political leadership in the area.
The group had accused Ms Amolo of writing a letter to the Kenya Sugar Board {KSB] and firm of private investors involved in the establishment of the new white sugar factory in the area.
The disused land previously belonged to the County Council of Homa-Bay before the district was subdivided into two, namely Ndhiwa and Homa-Bay, last year, and now fall under the new County Council of Ndhiwa.
Local leaders, who included the hard-working Ndhiwa MP, Joshua Orwa Ojode, who is also an Assistant Minister for Internal Security and Provincial Administration, had identified the site for the proposed sugar mill, next to a land plot previously alloted to the Mbita based ICIPE, for experiment and research on animal husbandry and farming.
Mourners took to their heels, and were forced to run helter-skater for their dear lives, as the civic leaders and local politicians went for each other, ready to unleash mayhem. The situation developed into a free-for -all.
Ms Amolo is a perennial parliamentary election loser in Ndhiwa constituency. She holds no elective post in the party sub-branches nor the main district branch, but has been masquerading as the ODM coordinator in Nyanza, whereas the real and recognised party organizers in the region are Messers Odungi Randa, in Kisumu and Tom Dola in the greater Southern Nyanza..
According to sources in Ndhiwa, she was only once admitted as an observer during the National Executive Council of ODM at the party meeting at the Orange House headquarters as observer, and thereafter she has since been claiming to represent Ndhiwa, something which appeared to have irked the party de facto leaders in the district. It is also being alleged that she is being pushed to take over the branch leadership by outsiders, namely her backers from Gem and Bondo districts.
She was accused of having written letters to the Kenya Sugar Board and the investors, the Sukari Industries Ltd, protesting that the sugar factory cannot be established in the area before feasibility studies are carried out.
The chairman of the Kenya Sugar Board, Mr. Okoth Obado, said his board had allowed the investors to go ahead with the project because when this mill is completed, it would ease the congestion of cane delivery at the nearby Awendo-based SONYSUGAR factory.
Sugar cane is grown in Ndhiwa in abundance, but the farmers who deliver the crop to Awendo, more than 50 kilometers away, have been complaining of the exorbitant transportation costs.
Speakers at the funeral heaped a lot of praise for the concerted efforts by their MP, Joshua Orwa Ojode, which has eventually resulted in the possibility to have the new sugar mill established in the area, arguing that such enterprises would create job opportunities for the local people.
Ndhiwa technocrats in attendance at the funeral, who included Mr.Dennis Orero, praised the MP and the government for having issued the new investors with the permission to construct the new white sugar factory
Ends
leooderaomolo@yahoo.com
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Subject: Funeral of Ex-Councilor marred by fighting and scuffles caused by leaders rivalries
Joluo oaie wach mar lok liel kar bura mga weche ma ok oluwore gi yuak. Weche party los e buch party, weche dongruok bende los buch dongruok.
Wapuoyo kendo wayie godo gero kar rego niang’ Ndhiwa. Jaduong Ojedeh bende wapuoyo ni umbe ber. Walemo ne ni tende okel dongruok ei Dhiwa kod aluor mare kende joote mag bunge ma moko bende osom lebo no. Gi ayie wache anjawo mag chamo pesa CDF kod kunyo tie ji.
This is a sad thing to hear politicians fighting in a funeral; it has become a trend which should be discouraged so that we can give the departed peaceful rest.
Equally am at pains to see politicians opposing devt projects such as the proposed sugar factory; what are they upto? such politicians have no place in the current dispensation. we want development and that can only be achieved if our people are empowered economically. Let us condemn these politicians strongly and move ahead with the project.
Thoo jothurwa, dongruok to ber! Wanbende wabedie gi cash crop ma wanyalo loso godo pesa.
My take is tnat all development agenda’s should be approached soberly. Funerals are funerals and we should stop turning them into political rallies. Besides there are alot of brains from NDhiwa who can give informed ideas if they are called upon to contribute.
Every potential investor knows that the establishment of an industry has both environmental and physical effect on the area involved and it would only be prudent that a feasilbility study be carried out, a cost benefit analysis properly done and measures taken to counter any sude effects in the future if the people from Ndhiwa are to truelly benefit from the venture. Politics should be divorced from the issue (Ojode and Amollo have been political enemies as long as we can remember)and the welfare of the people taken into consideration. After all we might have a totally new generation of political leaders in the near future!
Lets keep our politcal differences aside and cherich what make lives change not acts of throwing side shows here and there its disheartening for female politician who sees future Employed in gain ful not kazi kwa vijana exlicits i think this notion should stop.
I think am tired of this old fork politics it Brrrrr.pwah,I think we passed new constitution with intial manifestos i cursed or doomed they are the profits of doom.
am from dhiwa constituency and would like to build our constituency factory by working in the newly build sugar factory since i have Bachelor of science in industrial chemistry.
Factory ne oger ma oyaw kendo rego niang maber kabisa.Sani niang manyocha tuo epuothe onge kendo chudo ber.Tich ne jopiny omedore kabisa kendo aluora mar kama mchine nitie olokore kabisa sitima rieny nengo plode kod udi bende sani odhi malo kabisa.Ji man kod plode kanyo sani yudo pesa mar rental.
An achiel kuom ngat mane otamore wach mar chungo gero machine nekech jo pingo ne oruako esiasa jo Nema ne otimo assesment kapok ochiw certificate.
Koro mana pur kod winjruok kod wananchi mondo ji odhi mbele!Mano iluongo ni dongruok.