Former nursing union Secretary-General Seth Panyako has sensationally claimed that President William Ruto personally wanted him dead during the violent Malava by-election campaigns, alleging that hired goons hunted him house-to-house after he lost to UDA’s David Ndakwa.
Speaking from his vandalised hotel in Malava town, a visibly shaken Panyako recounted when masked youth armed with pangas and batons raided his home and business premises.
“Nabii Nabwera ananichukia kwa sababu bibi yake aliniuzia hoteli. Ile siku walikuwa wananitafuta kama angenipata angeniua. Nilipiga nduru kwa police station ndio dunia ijue Ruto alikua anataka kuniua,” he told journalists surrounded by broken furniture and shattered glass.
The by-election, held on December 10 after the death of MP Malulu Injendi, saw Ndakwa win with 21564 votes against Panyako’s 20210, a margin of 1,354 votes that the unionist now disputes.
Panyako, running on an DAP-K ticket, says preliminary results from 42 polling stations showed him leading by over 2,000 votes before tallying at Chegulo Primary was abruptly stopped at 2 a.m. and ballot boxes moved to Malava Police Station under heavy security. “They stole my victory in the dark. When I protested, they sent death squads,” he alleged.
Eyewitnesses confirmed that on the night of counting, a group of over 50 youth chanting UDA slogans stormed Panyako’s Highway View Hotel, smashing windows, looting the bar, and setting two delivery motorcycles ablaze.
Panyako says he escaped through the back door and ran barefoot to Malava Police Station where he spent the night on a wooden bench. “I screamed for help so the world would know the President wanted me silenced,” he added.
The former Secretary-General of the Kenya National Union of Nurses linked the violence directly to a long-standing land dispute with Lugari Constituency MP Nabii Nabwera, whose wife sold Panyako the hotel property in 2021.
Nabwera, a known Ruto ally in Kakamega politics, reportedly demanded the land back after the transaction, leading to years of court battles. “That hotel is the reason they wanted me gone. Ndakwa and Nabwera work for State House. This was planned elimination,” Panyako claimed.
Police in Malava confirmed arresting 14 suspects in connection with the vandalism but released 12 on cash bail the following morning.
Kakamega County Police Commander Joseph Chesire said investigations are ongoing, adding that Panyako recorded a statement but declined to name specific attackers. “We have enhanced security around his premises. No life was lost,” Chesire told reporters.
David Ndakwa dismissed the allegations as sour grapes. Speaking from his home in Chemuche, the MP-elect said, “Panyako should accept defeat like a man. I won fairly in all six wards. Accusing the President of attempted murder because someone sold him a hotel is cheap politics.” UDA Kakamega chairman Benjamin Washiali echoed the sentiment, calling on the Nursing Union boss to present evidence in court instead of “crying on camera”.
As cleanup crews swept broken bottles from the hotel floor and youth in Malava town openly celebrated Ndakwa’s gazettement scheduled for next week, the once quiet constituency remained on edge, wondering whether a simple hotel sale has now turned into a deadly political vendetta.
