When James Osogo stood to protect Migingo

One hot afternoon in March 2003, at the height of Kenya’s diplomatic tiff with Uganda over Migingo Island, found former Cabinet minister James Nakhwanga Osogo on the road heading to President Mwai Kibaki’s private residence in Muthaiga, Nairobi.

Enraged by Ugandan leader Yoweri Museveni’s “outrageous claims” over Migingo, the old man was itching to set the record straight.

Having closely followed the territorial dispute in Lake Victoria, next to his Busia South (now Budalang’i) Constituency, for decades, Osogo had raw facts plus copies of beacons on the issue, which he wanted to share with his former Cabinet colleague and Head of State.

He arrived at Kibaki’s compound at about 3.15pm and waited for about thirty minutes before being ushered in. President Kibaki was eager to meet his old friend, with whom he had served in the government of founding President, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta.

“After tea and pleasantries, Dad handed a long letter and other documents which he had personally crafted alongside Migingo Island beacon details to the President. The latter promised to take up matter with his Foreign Affairs minister Kalonzo Musyoka,” recalls John Osogo, who chauffeured his father to Kibaki’s residence.

TERRITORIAL BORDERS

Consumed by the Migingo affair, the ex-Minister continued to bombard the President with literature on Migingo and several follow up letters. Osogo had earlier penned several open letters to Kibaki’s predecessor, Daniel arap Moi, on the issue of territorial borders in Lake Victoria. In one of the letters published in the then authoritative Weekly Review, the former Budalang’i MP demanded that the Moi administration address the boundary issue in Lake Victoria, following harassment of Kenyan fishermen from Bunyala and Samia by Ugandan security personnel.

“This writing passion and concern over territorial boundaries in Lake Victoria led the family to urge Dad to pen down his own history. And 17 years later, we are proud to see the final product, the autobiography – Honourable Deeds: The James Osogo Story,” says the younger Osogo.

The old man told the Nation from his lakeside home of Port Victoria, Busia County, that his first wife, Maria, initially suggested the idea of penning his memoirs. With her typing skills, Maria volunteered to key in the initial manuscript using the old typewriter.

According to Maria, the husband was initially not enthusiastic, saying it was a laborious task: “But he later gave in and I continued banging his story day by day, until we got guided help from a young man from Nairobi,” she told the Nation.

POLITICAL HISTORY

The “young man” is 60-year old Bethuel ....  a historiographer and publishing consultant with 35 years’ experience in publishing, marketing, media advertising and communications.

He quickly inherited a bunch of manually typed notes and handwritten foolscaps, which had to be keyed-in manually back in Nairobi, before the old man retired to the village.

The former minister was very anxious about the book, having planned for it 10 years ago. “It took 10 months to complete the writing. This included visits to Mzee’s home in Port Victoria. With his advanced age, we had to hold short interviews but filled gaps by talking to family members. Some of the gaps were filled in by neighbours, relatives, his spouses and surviving brother, Paul Bwire Osogo,” says Bethuel.

RECORD KEEPER

A meticulous record keeper, Osogo shared all relevant material, including pictures and copies of his letters to Moi and Kibaki, with the author of his text. And to ensure accuracy of facts, he insisted that his only surviving sister, Dorothy Tsuma, who is in Kakamega County, be contacted to corroborate some of his sentiments.

Osogo, 87, has an illustrious political history. He is one of the six surviving independence politicians who served in the Cabinet of President Jomo Kenyatta. Others are Mwai Kibaki (Finance), Isaac Omolo Okero (Power and Communication), Charles Njonjo (Attorney-General), Daniel Mutinda (Information and Broadcasting) and Nathan Munoko (Public Works).

Osogo kicked off his front-bench political career in 1963 as an assistant minister for Agriculture, before serving in the Cabinet in the ministries of Information and Broadcasting, Commerce and Industry, Agriculture, Local Government, Health under Jomo Kenyatta and as an assistant Cooperative Development minister under Moi.

Now diabetic and having suffered two bouts of stroke, Orada, meaning “the one who rips opponents to pieces”, as his political supporters fondly refer to him, leads a quiet life in the village in a serene environment adjacent to Lake Victoria.