Business came to a standstill in Kisumu as the
convoy escorting the body of Fidel Odinga made its way from the Kisumu
International Airport to the Jomo Kenyatta Sports Ground.
The
body arrived at noon for public viewing before being transported to
former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s Opoda home in Bondo, Siaya County.
Residents
waited by the streets eager to have a glimpse of the body, with
motorcyclists paving the way for the motorcade with various theatrics.
The body arrived in Kisumu shortly after 10am in a Kenya Air Force chopper.
Thousands
of mourners, a number of family members and politicians had flocked to
the airport to receive the body. Members of the Odinga family arrived
shortly before the body arrived, also in a Kenya Air Force helicopter.
There
were three helicopters arriving in Kisumu from Nairobi -- one carrying
the body, another had Fidel's widow Lwam Bekele and her friends, while
the third carried Mr Odinga, his wife Ida and a group of politicians
including Senators James Orengo and Anyang Nyong'o and ODM party
chairman John Mbadi
They were
received by Governor Jack Ranguma of Kisumu, Cornel Rasanga of Siaya,
Cyprian Awiti of Homa Baya and Kisumu deputy governor Ruth Odinga, who
is an aunt of the late.
The Air Force plane that ferried Fidel’s body to
the Kisumu International Airport. It landed at 10am.
Thousands of mourners have lined up the main Kisumu streets, awaiting to receive the body.
TIGHT SECURITY
Earlier, security had been beefed up around the lakeside city of Kisumu ahead of the arrival of the body.
Hundreds of regular police, Administration Police, as well as plain-clothed officers were deployed to the area.
The
officers, some of them sourced from outside the county, are already
conducting patrols around the city, with a concentration around the
airport and the Jomo Kenyatta Grounds where the public viewing is set to
be conducted.
The
expectations of the people were high following long queues that were
already building up on the road to the Kisumu International Airport.
Many others walked towards the area in wait for the body.
RUGBY PLAYERS
Rugby players, who will act as pall-bearers, were also set in wait for the plane taking off from Nairobi’s Wilson Airport.
Members of the Kisumu rugby fraternity await the arrival of the body of Fidel Odinga at the Kisumu International Airport.
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