By the time Bernard Bokanda Mulama pulled himself back onto the podium, one leg still fighting to break free of the hands dragging him down, he understood that the political camaraderie he once shared with Governor Fernandes Barasa had curdled into something far more dangerous than a falling-out.
The Lumakanda MCA spent Monday night in hospital, nursing injuries to his back and leg, after what he describes as a coordinated attack by members of the governor’s security detail during a public grants-disbursement event in Lumakanda Ward.
What began as a routine county function—the handover of KSh 6 million in Social Protection Grants to 120 groups across the sub-county’s six wards—ended in chaos, with Bokanda fleeing for his life through a crowd, colliding with a woman with a disability as he scrambled to escape.
“It was a death trap,” Bokanda said, describing the ordeal in an exclusive account to WKT.
From ally to adversary
Bokanda’s presence at the event was itself a marker of how far his relationship with the governor has fallen. Once counted among Barasa’s allies within the county assembly, he was stripped of his position as minority whip and has since emerged as one of the governor’s most vocal critics. That history, he believes, is precisely why he found himself targeted.
He maintains he attended Monday’s event in good faith, understanding it to be open to the public.
“The meeting was a development event, and I had every right to attend alongside my people,” he told WKT, rejecting any suggestion that his presence was intended to cause disruption.
A speech, a signal, and a scramble
According to Bokanda, the gathering unfolded without incident for its first half hour. Governor Barasa addressed the crowd for more than 25 minutes, at one point remarking that he had travelled with his own team and that no MCAs or the area MP were in attendance—a comment Bokanda initially took to be aimed at members of the public standing near him on the podium, not at him directly.
“If there had been an issue, the governor could simply have whispered to us, and we would have resolved it there,” Bokanda said, reflecting on how quickly the moment turned.
It was only after Barasa finished speaking, Bokanda alleges, that the governor directed security personnel to clear the podium of anyone not part of his inner circle. A man approached both Bokanda and his colleague, Lwandeti MCA Dan Mukhwami, quietly instructing them to leave.
Bokanda says the local OCS, positioned above nearby toilets overlooking the grounds, attempted to intervene diplomatically—requesting two officers be assigned to escort the MCAs out in an orderly fashion. Before that conversation could finish, Bokanda alleges, a county security officer seized him by both legs.
“I managed to free one leg and pulled myself back to the podium,” he recounted.
The reprieve was brief. Bokanda says he was then pushed to the ground, where two men he identified as part of the same group grabbed him by his trousers and shirt. In the ensuing struggle to break free, he fell onto a woman with a disability who had been standing nearby.
Flight for safety
Bruised and shaken, Bokanda made his way to Lumakanda Police Station, from where he was rushed to Village of Hope for initial treatment before being referred to Aga Khan Hospital for further care. He confirmed he sustained injuries to his back and leg but says he is now in stable condition.
Despite the ordeal, Bokanda sought to reassure his constituents rather than stoke fear, urging residents of Lumakanda Ward not to panic and insisting that he is recovering well.
