One year later, Chris Msandos murder still unresolved

It is now a year since the murder of the electoral commission’s ICT manager Chris Msando. Twelve months down the line, his death has just been added onto the growing list of people who have been killed, and whose murders have remained unresolved.

During a memorial service held on Saturday, July 28 to mark the first anniversary of his death, the family and the political leadership present called on the police to bring to book Msando’s killers.

Congregating at Christ the King Catholic church in Embakasi, family and friends of the late Chris Msando relieved the painful memories of the disappearance which turned out to be the murder of the IEBC ICT manager on June 28, 2017 — just nine days before the August 8th election.

“A time like this we they had already picked his body and taken him to the mortuary and for us we were looking for our dear husband, father, brother…. What you did, you might have killed the body but you did not kill the spirit or soul,” Eva Msando, the widow of the deceased.

The list of high profile murders has been growing in Kenya. For some, police inquiries have been opened and some closed while for others, cases or inquests are still pending many years later.

However, for Msando, little seems to have been done in probing the murder.

At the memorial service, IEBC Chairman Wafula Chebukati was represented by the commission’s Corporate Affairs manager Tabitha Mutemi, who described the brutal murder of Msando as a big blow.

“When a loved one becomes a memory the memory becomes a treasure. The late Msando will be remembered for his diligent service. He is gone from our sight but never from our hearts,” stated Ms. Mutemi.

“It may take one year, two, ten or more years. But ultimately, I know God has the final say,” said Eva Msando.

Politicians from the Orange party said as part of the handshake and building bridges initiative, the government should track down the masterminds of Msando’s murder.

“A year down the line, the government is yet to come out to tell us why Msando had to die and who were responsible,” ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna said.

“The first bridge should be build in the doorstep of Chris Msando. President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga should extend an olive branch to the family members of Chris  Msando,” said Embakasi East MP Babu Owino.

Mathare North legislator Anthony Oluoch said, “Msando paid the ultimate price and today this country and its leadership stands on the death and blood of Chris Msando.”

Msando was found murdered and his body dumped in a thicket in Kikuyu, Kiambu County with his wrists slit nearly a week after he went missing. A year later, the file is still with the investigating team.

Msando’s death if not resolved, will join the long list of pending murder files that include that of controversial businessman Jacob Juma and former Kabete MP George Muchai among others.