Write Arrum-Tidi Ogonglo at Mbita Point

The outspoken ODM nominated MP’s quest to become the next Mbita MP now hangs in balance following the new dimension and political development which has seen more influential political personalities plunging into the race for the same seat.

The seat has now attracted four more aspirants bringing the total number of the contestant to five. Among them is Mss Odhiambo close cousin Phares Ogweno Ratego, whose home is just next to Waware Secondary School in Rusinga East Location and almost sharing the same fence with the rural home of Ms Odhiambo’s parents .The two homesteads are only separated by a distance of less than 50 yards.

But the man whose candidature has sent the shock-waves to the spinal code of other aspirants is the computer genius Dr Mark Matunga who works with the Microsoft Computer international as an educationist responsible for East, Central and Southern African regions based in Nairobi.

Dr.Matunga who has been on the campaign trail for the last two years, was previously slated to contest for the powerful and lucrative position of Homa-Bay County governor and was considered as the leading contenders. Because it is widely believed that he was doing extremely well in that race.

The new entrant into the race is a man who is equally dynamic and eloquent and a master politician. However, he shocked everyone when he just made an abrupt about turn at the weekend following what is viewed by political pundits as the result of heavy pressure on him mounted by the elders an electorate in his native home turf of Mfangano Island.

A large number of elders who gathered at his rural Mfangano home last Friday and urged him to contest the Mbita seat, saying the islanders have been marginalized for many years ever since the 8inception of the constituency in the late 1960s. Nobody from Mfangano has ever been elected to represent Mbita constituency, while several MPs have always come from the neighboring Rusinga Island.

The seat was created in 1966 following the abolition of the tri-cameral parliamentary system, which was negotiated by the Kenyan leaders and the British government at the 1962 Lancaster House constitutional conference on Kenya.

After the Senate was abolished it was decided that all the 42 Senators representing 42 district be absorbed and that new constit8encies be created in the national Assembly. The Senators were given the choice and option to decide as to on particular areas where they would like to represent in the August House.

It was during this tie when the late Senator Sellemiah Mbeo –Onyango a native of Mfangano Island who had won the Senate seat for South Nyanza during the 1963 general elections that ushered in the country political independence in June 1963hade made his cho9ice and chosen Mbita as his soft landing place. Mbeo Onyango became the first MP for the area. But he did not stay longer as he was trounced by the firebrand George Osingo Migure in 1969.

Although Senator Mbeo-Onyango was born on Mfangano Island, he had moved out and settled on the mainland at a place called Manyatta in Sakwa East Location, Migori County, near Awendo Town in the newly created Awendo district therefore the residents of this particular island therefore consider themselves as having not been allowed the opportunity to elect one of their own to represent them in parliament ever since the constituency was created.

Osingo Migure himself was later dethroned by another man from Rusinga, the late Alphonce Okuku- Ndiege, the younger brother of the late Tom Mboya, who in turn surrendered the seat to Peter C Otieno Nyakiamo from the mainland Kakisingiri in what is now Gwassi constituency. And thereafter several men from the mainland side have won the seat before it was sub-divided into two Mbita and Gwassi constituencies a couple of years ago.

There has been discontent by the residents of Mfangano whose voting strength is reported to be superior in numbers than those registe5ed on the neighboring Rusinga Island.

Also interested in the same seat are two men from the mainland Gembe and Lambwe East Location one Omondi Odalo and Caleb Orwa, though the two are considered to be most insignificant and greenhorns in Mbita politics, clan rivalries could help them garner enough votes to upset the two luminaries Matunga and Odhiambo.

Matunga, however, has a head-start due to his track record of development activities in both Mfangano and Rusinga Islands. Phares Ratego is equally has a colorful credibility duet0o his role as the leader of the Mbita Professional Caucus who have been working closely with the outgoing M Otieno Kajwang’ on matters and issue related to the development of the constituency.

Obviously Odhiambo and Ratego candidature would cause a lot of confusion, especially in Rusinga island due to their maternal relations. The two hails from a small clan called Jo-Kolo, which is a sub-clan of the larger Waware clan.

Millie Odhiambo is a member of the ODM re-loaded goup that has la8nched a formidable campaign for Raila Odinga, and she is considered close to the Odinga family and a personal friend of Mrs Ida Odinga, while Dr Matunga has been one of the think-a-tank group in ODM ever since 2007.

Ends