By REUBEN OLITA
July 20, 2026| A section of Teso leaders has poured cold water on the newly minted political marriage between former Busia Governor Sospeter Ojaamong and incumbent Governor Dr. Paul Otuoma, dismissing it as a desperate, last-minute scramble that cannot rescue Otuoma’s re-election chances in 2027.
The dismissal came on Sunday during an impromptu fundraiser for the roofing of the expanded Independent Presbyterian Church at Osajai — an event that quickly turned into a staging ground for 2027 politics.
Leading the charge was gubernatorial aspirant Arthur Amug Osiya, Principal Administrative Secretary in the Executive Office of the President, flanked by a bench of Teso political heavyweights: Angurai North MCA Isaac Wamalwa, Malaba North MCA Patrick Omanyala, UDA Busia County Chairman Maurice Chetambe, former councillor John Emomeri, Malaba Central Ward MCA aspirants Moses Imai and Gerald Okima (alias Punda), and Angurai South Ward aspirant Sadrack Ipara.
A MARRIAGE OF CONVENIENCE — OR A LAST GASP?
On paper, the Ojaamong-Otuoma pact looks like shrewd arithmetic: Busia County’s electorate is anchored by two dominant blocs, Luhya and Teso, and a Luhya governor locking arms with the community’s most influential Teso don should, in theory, deliver a near-unbeatable coalition.
But Osiya’s camp reads it differently — as two wounded politicians propping each other up. Ojaamong, after two terms as governor, tried to reinvent himself as an MP in the last election and lost, a defeat his rivals now cite as proof his hold on Teso votes is not what it once was.
Otuoma, meanwhile, is nursing a governorship whose popularity, Osiya’s allies argue, has never fully recovered from a rocky first term.
Osiya used a football analogy to drive the point home: Otuoma, he said, now believes he can transform Busia “in the last five minutes of a crucial match,” banking on Ojaamong to “score the winning penalty.”
“That is too late,” Osiya said.
“THE COUNTY HAS BEEN DEAD”
Osiya did not soften his verdict on Otuoma’s three years in office.
“We supported Governor Otuoma with the hope that he would surpass Ojaamong’s development record, but that has not happened,” he said. “For three years, the county has been dead. Agriculture is dead, hospitals are struggling, and without agriculture poverty will continue to rise. Without functional hospitals, more lives will be lost.”
He claimed residents of Marachi now travel to Kakamega for treatment while those from Teso go as far as Bungoma — an accusation aimed squarely at the state of Busia’s health sector under Otuoma.
Osiya urged residents to register and arm themselves with national IDs and voter cards ahead of August 2027, framing the election as a referendum on the current administration. He also took a swipe at vote-buying: “Do not vote because of KSh5. Vote for leaders based on what they can do for the people.”
Notably, he paired that populist appeal with praise for President William Ruto, urging Busia to back the president’s re-election to keep national projects flowing to the county — a signal of where Osiya intends to plant his own flag.
ALLIES PILE ON
Osiya’s fellow Teso leaders used the platform to reinforce the narrative of a governorship adrift. Angurai North MCA Isaac Wamalwa accused the county of abandoning ward-level development altogether.
“Between 2017 and 2022, MCAs were encouraged to initiate development projects using county funds. Today, roads are not being repaired, ECDE teachers have not been employed, and many residents are questioning where county resources are going,” he said, noting the disconnect between Busia’s multi-billion-shilling budget and what residents see on the ground.
Malaba North MCA Patrick Omanyala went further, casting Otuoma’s recent appointments of Teso community members as a transparent, late-stage vote-buying manoeuvre rather than genuine inclusion.
“Four years after taking office, the governor is now appointing people from the Teso community. That should not be used as a campaign tool,” he said.
UDA Busia County Chairman Maurice Chetambe framed 2022 as a broken promise. “In 2022 we trusted Otuoma to improve on areas where Ojaamong had fallen short. Unfortunately, many residents believe those expectations have not been realised,” he said, before throwing his weight behind Osiya’s bid.
Former councillor John Emomeri was blunter still, casting Osiya in near-providential terms: “God has heard Tesos’ problems by bringing Osiya. Your star is shining, Osiya.”
Malaba Central Ward aspirants Moses Imai and Gerald Okima (“Punda”) echoed the sentiment, each describing Osiya as the man best placed to turn the county around. Angurai South Ward aspirant Sadrack Ipara reserved his sharpest words for Ojaamong himself, accusing him of political betrayal — endorsing a governor he had previously criticised, seemingly for his own advantage rather than any change of heart on Otuoma’s record.
THE STAKES FOR 2027
Beneath the rhetoric lies the real fight: whether a Luhya-Teso ticket built by Otuoma and Ojaamong can outmuscle a Teso camp that insists both men are now more liability than asset to each other.
For Osiya and his allies, the alliance is not a show of strength but an admission of weakness — two political survivors reaching for each other because neither can win alone. Whether Busia’s voters see it the same way will be decided in August 2027.