Mt Elgon politician Nathan Wasama was shot on Thursday evening outside his house. [Courtesy]
The slain Mt Elgon politician Nathan Wasama was leading a cleansing ritual that involved cutting down two significant fig trees in Mt Elgon and Trans-Nzoia, which elders blamed for misfortune affecting the Sabaot and Bukusu communities.
The ceremony had faced strong opposition over the past year from a senior politician in Mt Elgon because of its perceived political significance.
Unknown assailants shot Wasama on Thursday evening outside his house as he stepped out of the bathroom at around 7pm.
Nothing was stolen during the shooting, heightening tensions in Bungoma and Trans-Nzoia counties.
Wasama, a former Chesikaki councillor, was among Laibon elders seeking security to fell the two fig trees, which their forefathers had guided them to cut down after 100 years of their existence.
The elders had criticised what they described as attempts by some leaders to frustrate the cleansing ritual.
"This is a crucial ceremony, but we are facing frustration and intimidation from some senior politicians that the cutting of the fig trees will have a negative political impact," Wasama told journalists in January this year in Kitale.