A nine-year-old child was killed after a local chief's house caught fire, and police in Luanda, Vihiga County, have begun investigating the matter.
It is reported that the boy's sleeping room is where Mukhalakhala Chief Amos Okaka Esitsimi started the fire on Friday night. Attempts to extinguish the flames were unsuccessful.
"Neighbors joined the family to battle the raging fire whose cause we are yet to establish," stated Area Assistant Chief Joseck Omulo Ebwiranyi. The infant in the room had died from burns when the fire went out.
"Luanda police swiftly visited the scene and helped take the body of the deceased to Maseno Coptic Mission Hospital morgue."
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The family was unable to recover any belongings from the Grade 3 student's room after the fire, as farm produce and bedding were among the other goods that burned to the ground.
"We have left the matter to police to continue with investigations but I believe that national government officers need security bearing in mind the kind of the work they do," Omulo added.
Walter Mukungu, chair of the welfare committee for national chiefs and their assistants, echoed his views when he stated that administrators are facing security threats, particularly following the directive from Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithure Kindiki to ensure the illicit brew business is removed from their jurisdictions.
"Chiefs do arbitration work. There are so many incidents where chiefs have been harmed because of their work. We need a national government administration police unit to secure chiefs," Makungu said, adding that criminals also fight back.
He did not, however, address whether the incident at Chief Okaka's residence was related to his work, stating instead that police should be given more time to look into the situation.
