Born on 14th December 1952, Cyprian Awiti is the current governor of Home Bay county. Awiti is an ally of former Prime Minister and ODM leader Raila Odinga . His reign as governor has not been without its fair share of scandals. He has been accused of engaging in corner corner dealings as you will elsewhere in this article. Known for his sense of humor, Awiti has been variously labelled as the worst dressed governor in Kenya.
The governor has served in a number of boards in different capacities including:
- Honorable treasurer- Kenya Medical Training College (KMTC).
- Chairman, Board of Governors at Kisumu Polytechnic.
- Chairman, Board of Governors at Mawego Girls High School and Oluti Mixed Secondary School.
- Board member, Health NGO Networks (HENNET).
- Member, Human Resource Management, UK.
- Chairman, Rachuonyo District Health Management Team.
Background
The governor was born in Rachuonyo sub county, Home Bay where he attended Mawego Primary School and later Mawego secondary School for his O-levels. He then proceeded to Mombasa Technical Training Institute where he successfully pursued a course in electrical engineering. In 1984, he proceeded to the University of Manchester where he graduated with a Master of Education in Management Administration in 1987.
Career
Awiti worked as an electrical inspector for the Ministry of Public Works for a number of years. He later worked at Mombasa polytechnic as a senior lecturer.
Between 1980 and 1983, he re-joined the public service, this time as a senior education officer in the Ministry of Education, Jogoo house.
In 1988, he became the principal at Railway Training School for six years.
In 1993, he was appointed county director at Marie Slopes where he served until 2010.
In 2013, he was elected the governor of Homa Bay county under the Orange Democratic Party.
In 2017, he was re-elected and afterwards a complaint was filed stating the elections were not free and fair. The High Court declared the elections were not fair and quashed the results. He moved to the Court of Appeal and it upheld the decision of the high court. Nonetheless, he still remains the governor of Homa Bay.
Family
The governor is married to Rosila Awiti who prefers to stay out of the limelight. They have four children together.
Controversies
In 2015, he was summoned by the Senate’s Public Accounts Committee to explain how he spent Sh11.8 million on renovation of the governor’s office , just a few days after assuming office.
In May 2021,the Homa Bay ward representatives wanted him impeached after accusing him of abuse of office and misappropriation of public resources. The MCAs began the process of ousting the governor during a heated house debate that saw many support the proposal. This came days after the impeachment of Wajir county governor Mohamed Mohamud.
