Kisii
8/11/07
 
MORE ELECTION VIOLENCE IN KISII AS MUDAVADI AND HIS CONVOY STONED BY ROWDY PNU YOUTHS.

By Leo Odera Omolo
 
 
One more nasty incident occurred in central Kisii district yesterday when unruly youths ambushed and attacked an ODM convoy of motor vehicles with stones and other lethal missiles.
 
The stone-throwing incident took place in Kituitu Chache constituency. It involved the ODM Presidential running mate Wycliff Musalia Mudavadi.
 
The incident occurred near Nyakegogi market. Mudavadi convoy had snaked on Nyakoe Marani road and branched off at the junction of Marani Kegogi and Marain-Nyakoe-Rioma junction when it ran into ambush.
 
Mudavadi escaped unhurt amid hails of stones aimed at his convoy of sleek cars and other vehicles ferrying parliamentary aspirants, supporters and ODM security details.
 
Also in the convoy were several ODM leaders and local branches officials. They were on their last leg of two days intensive search for presidential, parliamentary and civic seats votes in the area. The group was attacked by rowdy youths suspected to be supporters and sympathizers of PNU President Mwai Kibaki’s party.
 
The assailants sprung into action just as Mudavadi was preparing to address the crowd of people who had surged forward to greet him.
 
But unknowingly to the attackers was the fact that there were dozens of private ODM security details in several Nissan vehicles as well as Mudavadi armed bodyguards who swang into action giving the attackers thorough beatings.
 
Scores of the attackers were beaten senselessly and knocked to the ground. Others took to their heels and run into nearby bushes and banana plantations with ODM youths in hot pursuit. The riot police also joined the mellow and saved Mudavadi and his colleagues.
 
Two of the attackers were grabbed by members of the public as they attempted to fled and beaten up mercilessly before the police saved them. They narrowly escaped lynching by the enraged members of the public while the police took them into custody.
 
One was beaten and left bleeding profusely.
 
This was the second incident involving the ODM luminaries in the Gusii region. The first such incident occurred two months ago in South Mugirango Constituency in Gucha district when the area former MP Omingo Magara in the company of William Ruto a member of the ODM Pentagon and a former Eldoret North MP came under arrow and spear attack
 
The two were accompanied by a parliamentary hopeful on ODM ticket in Nyaribari Chache constituency whose immediate former MP is the Roads and Works Minister Simeon Nyachae, Mr. Chris Bichage the three were hurt and hospitalized.
 
It happened when Nyachae was conducting a Harambee funds drive for the youths in South Mugirango at a place called Nyamarumbe.
 
A group of well-drilled youths armed with crude weapons like rungus, bows and arrows had earlier been paraded before Nyachae and other MPs from Gusii region. The youths belonged to the outlawed ‘’chinkororo’’ outfit.
 
There is a big battle between the ODM Presidential nominees Raila Odinga and the Ford People’s Party leader Simeon Nyachae. The two Nyanza’s political giants are battling for close to 400,000 registered votes in Gusii region.
 
Nyachae’s party had won all the seats in the 10 parliamentary electoral constituencies in Gusii region in 2002. But this time around that majority is likely to be cut by half given the fact that Raila Odinga has made major throad into Gusii region in the recent past. There are signs that ODM is the party of the day in Gusii land. Mudavadi later addresses the now calm crowd as if nothing nasty had happened.
 
Ends.
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