Wanga among politicians at Ojwang’s burial as police keep off » Capital News
KISUMU, Kenya, Jul 4 — The burial service for the late Albert Ojwang is underway at Nyawango Primary School in Homa Bay County, amid tense calm a day after the dramatic razing of Mawego Police Station by mourners protesting his death in custody.
Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, Woman Representative Joyce Bensuda and area MP Eve Obara joined mourners at the ceremony on Friday, defying security concerns that had prompted fears of low attendance during an overnight vigil.
The trio, joined by Embakasi MP Babu Owino and Mbita’s Millie Odhiambo, showed up hours into the funeral service led by Batist Church amid tense calms following the chatic storming of a nearby police station.
Ojwang’s body arrived on Thursday at the family’s Kokwanyo home under chaotic scenes after students from the nearby Mawego Technical College intercepted the hearse and diverted it to the police station, where he had been briefly held prior to his death in a police cell in Nairobi.
Call for justice
The students marched nearly three kilometres while singing dirges, demanding justice.
Upon arrival, the students torched the police station, causing extensive damage and halting operations.
Calm was only restored after officers from Kendu Bay Police Station intervened.
The attack on the station stoked fears of retaliation and arrests, casting a shadow over the night vigil, which was largely deserted apart from close family members and church representatives.
Friday’s burial proceeded with no police presence on the ground.
Odhiambo Ojiro, a local activist, praised the youth for ensuring Ojwang—who was a trained teacher—received a dignified sendoff.
“The trooping of young people to bid farewell to the late Ojwang is a sign of solidarity. There’s only one clarion call: justice,” Ojiro said.
He further criticized political leaders for inaction, urging President William Ruto to rein in officers accused of extrajudicial killings and abductions.
“There’s no trust left in the system,” he said.