Writes Leo Odera Omolo In Homa-Bay Town
What could have been a high profile burial and solemn and tear sending off of the former Assistant Minister for the Internal Security Joshua Orwa Ojode turned chaotic and almost was marred by violence following deadly rumor that a section of Luo politicians including unnamed MPs had celebrated the sudden and tragic death of the Ndhiwa MP.
These rumors were the source of high tension that gripped the funeral home when the former Assistant Minister was laid to rest at his Unga village home in Kanyamwa Central, Ndhiwa district. The anger and sentiments of hostilities were displayed openly resulting in one MP from a neighboring constituency being totally barred fro making any speech or being introduced to the mourners. The MP had to be slipped out of the home quietly unnoticed..
Another deadly rumor had also reached the ears of Ojode’s close relatives and friend that some unnamed politicians and several MPs from Homa-Bay County had hired youths and political goons with instructions to heckle and shout at certain targeted speakers during the burial ceremony.
It was further alleged that an MP from the region was the one who had sent a secret word to the goons that had blocked the vehicle carrying the late Minister’s casket from entering his Unga village home last Friday. The goons who fought a running battle with the security men insisted that the body must be taken to Ojode’s Ratang’a parents home before being driven to his own home at Unga for an overnight stay.
The sequence of event last Friday had complicated the matter for the late Minister’ family, and this is prompted his Widow Mary Ojode to deliver such a harsh statement while eulogizing her husband.
Meanwhile sources close to the Ojode family pointed an accusing finger at the Immigration and Registration of Persons Minister Otieno Kajwng’ who is the MP for Mbita, and the Rangwe MP Martin Otieno Ogindo.
The two are blamed for having politicized the burial of the departed soul of the abrasive Ndhiwa MP for political expediency.
The two senior-most politician in the Homa-Bay County were blamed for the close breakdown I protocol, Otieno Kajwang’ is the current ODM Homa-Bay County branch chairman, while Ogindo is the vice chairman, The branch Secretary is the Karachuonyo MP Eng James K Rege who is absolved of any blame as he did not featured anywhere I the burial arrangement.
But Kajwng’ who was not in talking terms with Orwa Ojode while he was alive later emerged from nowhere to the chagrins of the family ad appointed himself the master of ceremony.
The event was a high profile burial in that it was attended by President Mwai Kibaki, the Prime Minister Rail Odinga, the Vice President Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka, the entire member of the cabinet, Assistant Ministers and close to 103 MPs representing various constituencies in parliament led by the Speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Otiato Marende whose words of wisdom while condolensing the family of the late Ojode was like the gospel and inspired each and every mourner in attendance.
The occasion was a very special one and required high profile public relations. The noise making youths demanding forcefully to be served with food, were some of the intrigues allegedly masterminded by the anti-Ojode elements within the ODM Luo politician prompting the Ojode family to feel that party of the huge crowd that attended the funeral were not genuine mourners, but people who had gone to their home to shade the crocodiles tears.
Civic leaders led by the Mayor of Nairobi Coun Aladwa, the mayor of Mombasa, Coun Moudhir the Mayor of Kisumu, Coun Sam Okello, heads of parastatals and quasi government organizations. The presence of the Mayors from urban centers across the country were never mentioned, and the poor protocols which were haphazardly conducted by Kajwng’ was a total disappointment.
The task performed by the Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, the Migori MP John Pesa, the Speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Marenda President Kibaki and the Prime Minister Raila Odinga were commendable. Their word of wisdom helped a lot in calming down the highly charged situation, which ordinarily could have easily exploded into mayhem.
A number of presidential aspirants who included the Eldoret North William Ruto and the Sabatia MP Musalia Mudavadi had been targeted for booing and heckling by the excessively intoxicated and drunken goons.
Also earmarked for booing was the immediate former Rangwe MP Eng Philip Okundi, who is currently the chairman of the ODM elections board and chairman of the Communication Commission of Kenya {CCK}.
Okundi is once again in the race aspiring to be elected to the lucrative position of governor for Homa-Bay County, a position which the incumbent Rangwe MP Otieno Ogindo is also vying for.
It was originally planned that heckling of Okundi would depict him as unsuitable person for the governorship position and unpopular.
The action by noise making political hirelings had depicted members of the Luo community as most backward people. One mourner from the Kalenjin region was heard saying, ”But we thought the Luos were the most educated and civilized lots in this country. We did not expect to behave like this.”
In life, Orwa Ojode ha parted the company with the Prime Minister Raila Odinga ever since the formation of the coalition government of PNU / ODM in 2008. He has since then never shown his face to any public function conducted by he Prime Minister, and also kept low profile during the ODM grass root elections and boycotted all the party functions.
After the constitutional referendum of November 2005, in which the orange group which was led by Raila Odinga meted a sweeping victory over the Banana group supporting President Mwai Kibaki, there was a major cabinet reshuffle in which all the ministers allied to Orange Democratic Movement were including Raila Odinga wee sacked.
President Kibaki, however, surprisingly appointed Orwa Ojode to a full cabinet minister inchrge of Forestry and Wildlife. The Ndhiwa MP, however, declined the appointment in solidarity with his sacked friends including Raila Odinga.
Ojode ha served previous as an Assistant Minister for lands and Settlement and later as an assistant Minister for Education and was the chief campaigner of Raila Odinga presidential election in 2007. Prior to these events, Ojode has been very vocal and formidable defender of Raila Odinga on issues related to national importance and was expected to clinch a full cabinet portfolio, but many people were shocked when he was relegated to the Junior position of an Assistant Minister.
The situation was so much aggravated by he fact that Rongo MP Dalmas Otieno who all along and prior to the 2007 general election was loyal KANU member and leader was given the flag by Raila Odinga. Otieno Kajwang’ had never worked in the government was also appointed to a full cabinet position as the Minister for Immigration and Registration of Persons. Ojode considered himself as much senior to Kajwang in terms of parliamentary experience. He entire into parliament in 1994 whereas Otieno Kajwang;’ first entered into the August House in1997.
Before his death in an helicopter crash on Sunday June 10, Ojode had confided to this writer that he was considering the option of ditching the ODM and standing and defending his Ndhiwa parliamentary seat as an independent candidate. He said he felt like leaving the ODM, because the party was full of loose talkers and people with bad gossiping attitude.
He told me that while he was attending the funeral of Mr Phelogona Okundi in Rangwe constituency, he was suddenly attacked by Dr Oburu Oginga in full view of the mourners and accused of being one among those undermining the ODM. The incident took place when the grouping including the Prime Minister had attended the burial if the former Kasipul-Kabondo MP Eng. Pete Owidi near Oyugis. He and Raila, he said drove to Awendo to witness the opening of Sugarland Hotel in Awendo town which is owned by the former Rongo Mp George Ochillo-Ayacko, and after enjoying the evening in a large group of MP and friends he and Raila drover to his palatial home at Unga in Ndhiwa for the night. But the next day, he was publicly and scathingly attacked the Bondo MP Dr Oburu Oginga, the eldest brother of Raila Odinga. He felt that there were innuendos of bad gossiping going on about him and thereafter he choose to stay away from the group and concentrated on his ministerial duties giving the ODM party a break.,
In an exclusive interview with this writer a month ago, Ojode had recalled that similar attack was mated out to the former Deputy leader of ODM and the Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi when the latter turned up for the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga memorial service at the late Jaramogi Kang’o home in Bondo. In this particular function the Gem MP publicly attacked and savagely condemned Mudavadi.Ojode maintained that he believed the attack had contributed to Mudvadi’s departure fromn ODM. The unwarranted attack drove Mudavadi out of the ODM, so the ODm is full of bad gossipers and so called power-brokers