Shock and grief continue to engulf the nation following the fatal shooting of Kasipul Member of Parliament Charles Ong’ondo Were, which police have described as both “targeted and predetermined.” The legislator was gunned down on Wednesday evening in a brazen attack near the City Mortuary roundabout along Ngong Road, Nairobi.
According to a statement from the National Police Service (NPS) spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga, the attack occurred at around 7:30 p.m. when a white Toyota Crown vehicle carrying the MP stopped at a red traffic light. Eyewitnesses told police that a motorcycle with two occupants— a rider and a pillion passenger—approached the vehicle. The passenger disembarked and fired shots into the passenger side of the vehicle before fleeing the scene on the motorcycle.
The MP’s driver and another passenger, both uninjured, rushed Were to Nairobi Hospital, where he was pronounced dead on arrival. Police have termed the murder a “heinous and senseless crime,” and confirmed that high-ranking officers, including the Director of Criminal Investigations Mohamed Amin and Interior PS Raymond Omollo, visited the scene and hospital.
Muchiri Nyaga noted that the Nairobi Regional Police Commander is leading investigations, with detectives currently piecing together critical evidence. Authorities have appealed to the public for any information that might assist in the ongoing investigation, urging witnesses to contact the police through toll-free numbers or local stations.
The tragic death has sparked widespread mourning, with fellow legislators expressing disbelief. Saboti MP Caleb Amisi recounted having a conversation with Were hours before the attack. “He told me, ‘I need a conversation with you, mambo si mazuri.’ Five hours later, he is no more,” said Amisi.
Charles Ong’ondo Were was first elected to Parliament in 2017 and retained his seat in 2022 on an ODM ticket. He served on the Departmental Committee on Blue Economy and Irrigation. The legislator had an academic background in business management and previously held leadership positions in the private sector.
The country now waits for answers as investigations intensify into a killing that has left a constituency in mourning and the political class rattled.
