Ken Okoth tribute: Thespian brought cheer to Starehe

Starehe Boys’ Centre students perform a dance during the commemoration of the centre's 60th Founders' Day at the school in Nairobi. [Elvis Ogina. Standard]

The Starehe Boys’ Centre Form Four (4F) Class of 1995 paint an image of an amiable "four eyed" Ken Okoth whose passion for the arts made him stand out from his peers.

Way before the curtains opened on his political career as Kibra MP, the now deceased legislator had made a name for himself as a master thespian who played many roles in theatre performances, bringing scripted characters to life and leaving his audience in admiration.

Had it not been for his nickname ‘Koko Tea’ corrupted from his name Okoth, perhaps the late MP would have been named Captain Drake, a character from one of the European plays that the students often staged.

He portrayed the characters to perfection as he unrolled the conquest plot as narrated through the admiral who was courageous, determined and optimistic.

In his death, these same values have been used to describe him.

But beyond acting, Okoth was also a master script writer and producer. He developed his own version of Carol Lewis’ Alice in Wonderland by creating Alice in Computerland, to meet with the technological advances in society.

“He acted so effortlessly, it was really fascinating. The entire school admired how he played the trumpet,” recalled Antone Wambura, one of his classmates at Starehe who grew up with the MP in Kibera slum.

“He was more into arts than sports. He stood out in school because of that. It was amazing how he balanced academics with being in the school band, theatre and being a prefect,” said Fred Gori, another classmate.

Such memories stood out yesterday when Starehe Old Boys met for the celebration of the school’s 60th anniversary. They were memories that brought joy and laughter but also silence when Okoth’s death was mentioned.

Incidentally, the 1995 class was scheduled to meet the MP either today or Monday as part of meetings that became routine after he was diagnosed with cancer.