I’m still boss, Luo council chairman says

By Kepher Otieno

Besieged chairman of the Luo Council of Elders maintains he is still in charge.

Mr Riaga Ogallo dismissed a coup staged at the weekend that saw him ousted from office.

"I am still the bona fide chairman of the council and I will not quit unless the people who anointed me ask me to do so," Ogallo said on Sunday.

A group opposed to the chairman appointed new officials despite a court order stopping the elections.

Mr Opiyo Otondi was elected chairman, replacing Ogallo.

Two national committee members, Isaiah Nyandiko and Silas Olala, had filed a petition at the High Court in Kisumu seeking to block the move to dethrone Ogallo.

The plaintiffs claimed it was illegal to oust the chairman from office.

Through lawyer Samuel Ochillo, they urged the court to declare election of new officials null and void, terming it illegal and a breach of the council’s constitution.

Consequently, Justice Josephat Karanja granted the orders to stop the elections.