Defiance of six-piece voting shapes Homa Bay contests

Homa Bay Governor Cyprian Awiti receives a clearance certificate from the county Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission returning officer, Michael Kosgei, on June 2, 2017. On his left is his deputy, Hamilton Orata. Awiti was cleared to defend his seat on an ODM ticket. [James Omoro, Standard]

The rebellion against the six-piece voting strategy that characterised President Uhuru Kenyatta’s campaign in Nyeri, Meru, and Tharaka Nithi counties recently - and Raila Odinga in Rarieda in his home county of Siaya - holds true for Homa Bay County.

The six-piece voting mantra is unlikely to resonate with voters in the county because the political atmosphere here, perhaps more than anywhere else in Nyanza region, was polluted by the shambolic party nominations in April, particularly so in the race for the governor’s seat.

Incumbent governor

Dust still hangs thick in the air long after the county returning officer, Erastus Otieno, controversially declared incumbent Governor Cyprian Awiti the winner with 46,346 votes against his rival, Kabondo MP Oyugi Magwanga’s 14,661. Awiti tactically disappeared, only to surface in Nairobi amid protests against the results in Homa Bay.

So poisoned was the atmosphere by the announcement that folks with near-religious adoration for Raila Odinga openly shouted that they would vote for Uhuru Kenyatta and his Jubilee party if the disputed results were upheld. They were, and so it remains to be seen whether they will make good their threat.

The chairman of the Homa Bay Council of Elders, Owili Mwai, and secretary general, Joram Okalo, convened a press conference late in May and exhorted Raila to focus on his presidential ticket and leave the rest of the contests to people’s judgment.

Went independent

Magwanga’s supporters claim that his tallying centres scattered all over the county showed that their man won in 30 of the 40 wards, with 109,000 votes against Governor Awiti’s 60,000 votes. Magwanga quit ODM after the Orange party endorsed Awiti’s victory and went independent. He insists that his support for Raila’s presidential bid is intact.

“I support Raila to the hilt even as I go for Awiti’s jugular,” declares Magwanga.

Other independent candidates against ODM rivals who claim to have lost unfairly are MP Silvans Osele (Kabondo), Rangwe MP George Oner, Ndhiwa MP Agostinho Neto, and aspirants Gym Agembe (Suba North) Caroli Omondi (Suba South), and Fred Rabongo (Senate) against incumbent Moses Kajwang.

Strategic spots

But it is in the gubernatorial tussle, which has also attracted Prof Medo Musama, where the flame is hottest because of the immense financial resources and social clout that go with it, complete with the coveted image of a mini president.

In the streets and strategic spots of Homa Bay town, one has to guard their tongue not to stoke public anger. In the neighbourhood of the post office, famous for shoe shine booths and Bunge ya Wananchi gatherings, you dare not say anything against Magwanga, popularly known by his nickname of ‘Tiacha’, which denotes thunderstorm.

Homa Bay MP Opondo Kaluma recently threw caution to the winds when, with the 'Tibim' and 'Tyalala' NASA slogan music  booming from his motorcade, he stopped to campaign for himself and Awiti, only to harvest boos from a section of the crowd.

A curious observer cannot fail to notice the excitement in Homa Bay town for Awiti, who refers to himself as rabolo idho tek (it is difficult to climb a banana plant), save for isolated pockets such as the area around the pier, where Woman Representative Gladys Wanga has built sheds for fish mongers.

At the Homa Bay referral hospital, where renovation is going on, individuals prowl, on the lookout for elements they perceive to be anti-Awiti and have no qualms demanding to know what business one has at the hospital.

They are the beneficiaries of a hastily awarded contract.

Funds running into millions of shillings were allocated for the modernisation of the Homa Bay stadium, where  pillars stand like abandoned beacons where a perimeter fence was to be constructed. The stadium’s podium was partly done and left to degenerate at the mercy of the elements until recently, when work resumed.

Mercy of the elements

But the town is well paved and lit, thanks to input from the national government and the World Bank.

Solar lights, which are spread all over the county headquarters and smaller urban centres such as Oyugis, Kendu Bay, and Mbita, were installed by the county government.

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