Questions still linger on the exact cause of the fire that gutted Kisii county assembly a fortnight ago.
An activist has suspected foul play and called for extensive investigations. The call comes as Kenya Power officials in the region said the fire may have been the work of an arsonist. Property worth millions of shillings was destroyed.
Governor James Ongwae and assembly speaker David Kombo had earlier dismissed claims of arson, saying no document was destroyed.
But speaking to the Star in Kisii, Rigena human rights director Tomson Osoro said residents deserve to know what happened and the estimated cost of the destruction.
"We want the investigators to go to the root of the matter and give us a credible report of what transpired. The public is eager to know,” he said, adding that the incident smacks of a coverup by some individuals at the assembly.
“Judging by the fires we have witnessed in other county assemblies, we should not sit pretty and just brush off the incident as common. Let the public know the exact nature and cause of the fire. Whatever that went up in smoke was funded by wananchi,” Osoro said.
Assembly clerk James Nyaoga told the Star on Thursday that investigations were at an advanced stage. “Forensic experts have been conducting independent investigations and will give their report any time from today. Only experts will help unravel the matter,” he said.
Last week, Kenya Power distanced itself from claims that poor cabling at the assembly could have caused the fire. South Nyanza regional boss Kennedy Ogalo cited lack of sufficient evidence to prove that the fire was sparked by an electric fault.
“There's nothing to show that there were malfunctions with the sockets and the cabling system, and that brings an arsonist into the picture,” Ogalo said.
He cited 'dirty work' on the transformer at the assembly, pointing to suspicions of a possible plot to burn the premises.
"Though it was interesting to find the transformer isolated, we are still investigating how exactly that happened. But by the time we got there, there was already no power and we did not attempt to restore it. We went ahead and isolated the power and the meter box,” Ogalo said.
