- Eric Wekesa left his home at 6am to vote at Busakala Primary School, not knowing what was waiting for him on the way.
- Later he was arrested by people with knives asking him to shed blood; his bodyguard was repeatedly beaten and slashed with knives, sustaining life-threatening injuries
- Outside the polling station where he was supposed to vote, thugs were still waiting for him
On Thursday, November 27, the residents of Chwele-Kabuchai ward woke up early in the morning and headed to the polling stations to elect their new MCA following the death of James Mukhongo, a man who had been in charge of the ward for more than 15 years.
Source: Facebook
Eric Wekesa, the leading candidate in the hotly contested race that had already left three people dead and dozens injured, left his home at 12am to cast his vote at Busakala Primary School, regardless of what was waiting for him on the way.
Tensions had started to rise the day before, and Wekesa took all the necessary security measures to stay safe. However, he ignored the depths to which his tormentors were willing to go to silence him.
“Someone called me when I was just leaving home and told me to change the route, warning that there was danger ahead. I was confused because there is only one way to get to the polling station,” Wekesa recalled.
Two of his agents had already been beaten and left in a critical condition. The tension was clear in the town of Chwele, and the young politician running on the Independent ticket in the area dominated by FORD Kenya knew something urgent needed to be done.
But before he could act on the intelligence he had received, Wekesa was arrested by people carrying knives looking for his blood. His bodyguard was repeatedly beaten and slashed with machetes, sustaining life-threatening injuries.
“When we were attacked, we left, but my bodyguard was arrested. He was badly beaten. There was blood on his face. I survived luckily because I was a target,” said the MCA.
Wekesa managed to outrun the attackers, but his defender was overpowered. He tripped and fell, opening the way for armed thugs to catch and beat him.
“He had strength and a good body, so he couldn’t run as fast as I can. I have a small body, and I do morning exercises every day. That helped me,” recalled the former student leader of Kisii University.
However, he was not out of the woods. The attackers were determined to shed his blood. They continued to follow him with the speed and fury of a wounded lion.
“I was getting tired, and I had to avoid them in order to survive. I forced my way into a nearby house and found a beautiful woman brushing her teeth outside. She was half-dressed. She allowed me to hide inside the house, and I went straight to the room. I attacked her parents. They were only well-dressed. It was a shame, but I had no choice. They were kind enough to let me in,” said the ward representative.
The attackers were quickly following him. They stormed the house soon, but were confused when they saw the woman still outside.
“She was a beautiful woman, a teacher in a local school. When they saw her and the way she was dressed, they were distracted. Some started seducing her and teasing her about her beauty. They finally left, and that’s how I survived,” explained Wekesa.
But his suffering was not over. Outside the polling station where he was supposed to vote, thugs armed with knives and sticks were still waiting for him.
“I left the house on a motorcycle, but I realized that the driver who came to pick me up was the brother of one of the thugs who were looking for me. So I took his phone to make sure he didn’t give any information. When we got to the highway, I returned his phone and asked him to leave. I was taken by probox and went to hide,” recalled the young politician.
Starting at 6:00 am, he waited until 9:00 pm to vote. However, he had to be escorted to the polling station by the county commander under tight security.
Wekesa said the thugs who were following him were well protected as they were being abandoned and taken by the Prados.
“The county commissioner left me as soon as I entered the polling station, and I was scared because I knew the thugs were close. He assured me that everything is fine, and I want to thank him for that. However, as soon as I voted, I was informed that those people had entered the station. I jumped the fence and entered the coffee plantation. I was picked up by a motorcycle that was waiting for me. We had planned an alternative exit plan because we expected a conflict at the polling station,” told Wekesa.
The Wekesa family was evacuated from their home before election day to ensure their safety.
According to the ward representative, his family members were targeted throughout the campaign and received frequent threats.
“My wife stayed away for more than a month. She never slept in her bed during that time. I also had to find a safe place for my mother because threats were coming from everywhere,” said Wekesa.
Just a few days after being announced as the winner, the young politician was linked to a coffee theft group and was called by police officers. DCI in Nandi to record information.
A video of the suspect who appeared to be tortured and coached linking MCA to the group surfaced online, attracting public criticism and opposition.
The suspect was asked questions leading to the assumption that Wekesa was implicated. The people who were asking questions did not show their faces.
“The intention was to persuade me to go to Nandi so that I could be killed by the mob or arrested and denied bail so that I would not be sworn in. That was the plan, but fortunately, a county official who knew about the plan leaked the information to me,” said Wekesa.
When the public started asking questions, the police dropped the matter, and Wekesa was later sworn in as the new Chwele Kabuchai MCA on December 3, 2025.
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