Otiato Guguyu
When Busia County Governor Paul Otuoma was given the stage at Busia Youth Polytechnic just a few yards from his office, during the Orange Democratic Movement recruitment drive, he was jeered. Murmurs that had been simmering beneath the surface were boiling over, and in the uncontrollable crowd at the feet of Raila Odinga, it showed.
Governor Otuoma replaced Sospeter Ojaamong as Busia Ceo but his loyalty to the party and its interests were always in doubt. He had challenged Mr Ojamong on his second tenure and felt short-changed by ODM when he lost nominations. He left the Orange party only to return when Mr Ojamong was no longer eligible to vie.
The ODM party has had full control of Busia county since its formation owing to its ability to manage the county’s tribal interests. Busia is split between luhya groups of Banyala, Bakhayo, Basamia, Marachi and the Tesos but the border town itself which is cosmopolitan with all Kenyan tribes.
The Orange party’s ability to divide county positions from governor, the deputy, senator and women representatives mong the Busia’s major tribes has underscored it its ability to control almost all electoral posts in what were crowned six piece suits.
But by the August 2022 election the Orange party was losing its grip with independent senator Okiya Omtatah taking senate and former Nambale MP John Bunyasi making a narrow challenge at the governor. Even UDA made a strong showing with Joe Khalende challenging for Matayos MP on the President’s party.
Dr Otuoma’s win in the gubernatorial race after garnering 164,478 votes against Bunyasi’s 92,144 was however challenged in court. He carried a narrow mandate against multiple interests. The ODM supporters demanded returns, while the retreating interests of the Governor Ojamong’s administration and community were openly disgruntled with real and perceived exclusion.
Spoils
But the reality was that his rise to the top has also come at a time when government was essentially broke and sent very little money to counties to meet basic expenditure with little else to scheme off. According to the Controller of Budget on Busia County Executive, for the first quarter of the Financial Year 2023/24, the absorption of funds on development was at 0 percent while that on recurrent was at 92 percent.
An opportunity to rebuild the county major border towns including trailer parks that generate Busia’s largest source of revenue through parking fees, would present the opportunity to settle the interests or inflame them.
In less than a half year in office Governor Otuoma unveiled an ambitious plan to reorganise Busia and Malaba, a development that led to the demolition of hundreds of structures particularly those located near the main roads.
The idea was to construct modern day stalls owned by the county that would create order, and formalise the businesses to help county collect revenue as well as a trailer park to handle the congestion that has been endemic in the small town.
Hawk eyed senator
But cutting deals would be heard with a senator like Okiya Omattah. The litigious senator has earned national acclaim for the insecurity he has inspired at the highest office. President William Ruto has even threatened to slash him down with the state’s ornamental sword.
In Busia, the activist Senator has been running around gathering evidence of unaccounted and unplanned projects, incomplete undertakings, inflated operational costs, shoddy works, ghost projects, abuse of the supplementary budget process, and the irregular accumulation of substantial pending bills through extra-budgetary expenditure, and suing in court.
According to court document filed in a case against the Busia governor, Mr Omtatah claims that two contractors had been deployed at Mundika to build the trailer park, yet these works were not even publicly tendered in line with the law.
The court documents show that initial signboard had indicated the work was being done by Glakos Investment only later for it to change to Athi limited.
The court case also showed the distribution of new kiosks in Busia Town to replace the ones which were demolished has also proceeded with secrecy with only the governor and his inner circle know what is going on.
“The dispute concerns the opaque manner in which the respondent procured: (i) the construction of Busia Trailer Park at Mundika area, and (ii) new kiosks and is distributing them to individuals in Busia Town,” Senator Omtatah said in the suit.
“He has also been sued for ignoring at least 12 letters officers in the petitioners’ County Office have written to him through his County Executive Committee Members. As the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Busia County, he is the information access officer of the county.”
The crisis
On February 19th a group of traders carrying construction materials started putting up a site next to the Busia stadium and the adjacent Busia social hall.
When I came to Busia in 1999 the main stadium was not marked out and we used to walk right across it and go through an open air market and the social hall were men played Ajua.
But when the stadium perimeter wall was put up the adjacent areas were grabbed and appropriated to local business people. A hotel was put up and several shops that housed cyber cafes, motor cycle spare part shops and retailers that sold cold sodas for Busia’s painful sun.
This area had been cleared by Dr Otuoma during the 2023 demolitions as he promised to replace them with his vision of a better more organised Busia.
Local youth groups saw this as disenfranchisement, they feared the local businesses would be replaced by foreigners.
They wanted their interests secured demanding the space to serve as essential recreational spaces for the youth, who, due to unemploymentoften spend their leisure time there.
When the new owners showed up, the youth protested against the takeover, claiming the governor had promised them space. The situation escalated tragically and the traders were injured.
Support from the national government has come in the form of violence as it treats this as a security issue.
The traders returned with police escort two days later and a confrontation ensued, the police resorted to violence, indiscriminately firing upon the protesting youth, resulting in numerous injuries and reported deaths.
The police lobbed tear gas into the nearby St. Joseph Girls SecondarySchool, endangering the lives of innocent girls and damaged the only KPLC transformer serving the Burumba and Bulanda estates in Busia town, plunging these areas into darkness.
When the police arrested a local leader of the fish market group accused of organising the youth behind the resistance, the violence exploded.
Reports on the ground are indicating indiscriminate violence and police abuse as they round up scores of youth. Unconfirmed claims indicate casualties that could number tens are being reported as the senseless violence escalates.
I have personally heard reports of youth picked without committing any offence and some are hiding away from their homes in fear of the authorities.
Business has stalled completely as the violence has extended for days and is quickly evolving into dangerous political and tribal lines that will have a lasting effect in the county.
While the situation is being handled as security problem and reported as unemployment crisis, there is need for parties to sit and negotiate.
Senator’ Okiya Omtata’s counsel, for the path of transparency and constitutionality should be the preferred exit to this crisis.
Discover more from Oral East Africa
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Wonderful piece of insight to the ongoing crisis .
I support your advice to the leadership to find a framework for dialogue and pursue a lawful plan to develop Busia