A sombre and emotional atmosphere engulfed Homa Bay County on Thursday, May 8, 2025, as the body of slain Kasipul Member of Parliament Ong’ondo Were was received at Kabunde Airstrip ahead of his burial.
The body, flown from Wilson Airport in Nairobi, was met with an outpouring of grief from thousands of mourners who had gathered to pay their last respects. Heart-wrenching cries and wails echoed from the crowd as the coffin was loaded into a hearse at the airstrip. Many residents were visibly overcome with emotion, some collapsing in tears as the reality of the MP’s death sank in.
A long motorcade led by Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga and Homa Bay Town MP Peter Kaluma escorted the body from the airstrip to Were’s rural home in Kachien Village, Kasipul Constituency. Both leaders stood through the sunroofs of their vehicles, waving to the mourners and acknowledging their pain. The convoy moved slowly, frequently stopping to allow residents lining the roads to bid farewell to their fallen leader.
Ong’ondo Were was fatally shot last Wednesday along Ngong Road in Nairobi by an unidentified gunman who fled the scene on a motorcycle. Government Pathologist Dr. Johansen Oduor confirmed that the MP was shot five times in the chest at close range, suggesting a calculated and targeted assassination.
Authorities announced a major breakthrough in the investigation just hours after the body arrived in Homa Bay. A board member of a government parastatal, believed to have links to the killing, was arrested in Nakuru and transferred to Nairobi for interrogation. In addition, the MP’s bodyguard and driver were also taken into custody as investigations deepen.
The late MP’s funeral programme includes a public viewing of the body ahead of the final burial ceremony scheduled for Friday, May 9, at his home in Kachien Village. Ong’ondo Were’s death has left a deep void in the community, with residents and leaders alike calling for justice and a thorough probe into the circumstances surrounding his assassination.
