Last Tuesday evening, I was just chilling in the house doing nothing but slipping in and out of an evening nap. I got wind of a political rally brewing in the sleepy Siaya Town. Out of boredom, I decided to go, but anyway I didn't have any vote then. I negotiated the dusty roads of Siaya Town towards a location where where blaring music was coming from. The song was Susana Owiyo's Yesu tiyo t'aling' aling'a(ask any Luo in the hose about this song), a by then popular Luo gospel song, translating to Jesus is working as I watch.
I walked past the stadium road. The proposed Siaya County stadium was still stalled despite the commissioning deadline having long passed. Again, there's no hope of its completion in the near future. I turned my right into the Town market road. There were hordes of sweating humanity. The political gathering stood amid parked bikes, motorcycles, cars and everything. Right in front of Samco Supermarket.
I immediately realized it was the area (Alego Usonga Constituency) Member of Parliament. I used to hear people call him Samuel Atandi 'Meli'. This man had been my MP since I started staying in Siaya Town years ago, and now was seeking for another term . There he was, on top of a sleek Toyota V8 car, donning on some brown Tuxedo suit with some nice design on it. He liked his head bald and kept his beards shiny.
I squeezed my tiny self through the packed humanity. There were people from all walks of life, even small children with school uniforms were not left behind. Atandi Meli continued to narrate how the 'meli' which translates to a ship nearly sunk in the ODM party nominations. In the ODM party primaries held in Alego Usonga Sub County, Samuel Atandi carried the day with over 17,000 votes. His close competitor, a University of Nairobi don, Dr. Nicholas Kut Kochogo only managed 3,000 votes. The results were later challenged in a court of law, which saw Atandi's nomination certificate being nullified. However, few days after, here he was, saying Baba (Raila Odinga) himself had given him the certificate and was now thanking 'us' for the support.
As usual, he was with his aide, the area Member of County Assembly, people's favorite who had served since when towns had mayors! He had led for over twenty years, and was again seeking for another term. Atandi went on to narrate how he battled for the nomination certificate in a court of law in Nairobi. He accused his opponent, Dr. Kut of bribing the court officials who had the results nullified.
"ODM party gave me some of the best lawyers like James Orengo and Otiende Amollo, " said the MP. He continued to narrate how the by then Siaya County Senatorial candidate Oburu Odinga came in handy. Atandi said prominent politicians like James Orengo who was vying for Siaya County gubernatorial seat under ODM party ticket threatened to withdraw from the race if Atandi was not given the nomination certificate.
Atandi said resolutely that he was starting his campaigns officially the following week, and he would give proper handouts, and he wouldn't care if people's pockets were filled with money until they can carry no more. As I wrote this, it was weeks still waiting for my tiny pocket to be full.