Leaders on peace mission killed in plane crash
Rescue workers and people brave heavy rain at the the site where a Kenyan Y-12 military plane carrying legislators and other officials crashed into a hillside and burst into flames, killing at least 11 in Marsabit, Kenya, April 10, 2006. Photo/FILE
What you need to know:
- The pilot of the Chinese-built Y-12 that had taken off from the Moi Airbase, Eastleigh, for the one-hour flight, aborted his first landing attempt due to heavy fog, and circled Marsabit town.
- His second attempt to land at the military airstrip proved fatal as he realised too late that he was heading for the hill. The plane hit the hill, broke into two, and burst into flames.
- It crashed on a hill known to local residents as Kofia Mbaya (bad hat), named after a Tanzanian who used to live there.
Efforts to reconcile warring communities in Marsabit County suffered a major blow when six MPs perished in a plane crash.
It was the first time that the leaders of the three groups, the Borana, Gabra, and Rendille, had agreed to sit together and come up with a comprehensive peace programme after years of hostilities.
But it was not to be as the Kenya Airforce plane carrying them crashed into a hill, killing all the 14 members of the peace delegation. The crash, which was blamed on poor visibility, left four constituencies in Marsabit without parliamentary representatives.
Those who died included the deputy leader of the Official Opposition and MP for North Horr, Dr Bonaya Godana, MP for Saku, Mr Abdi Sasura, Laisamis MP Mr Titus Ngoyoni, and Moyale’s Dr Guracha Galgallo.
Others were Internal Security assistant minister Mirugi Kariuki, East Africa Legislative Assembly member Abdulahi Adan, district commissioner Peter Kingola, and Anglican Bishop for Kirinyaga Diocese William Waqo.
Three of the 17 passengers survived the crash. They were the provincial commissioner for Eastern Province, Mr Patrick Osare, and Kenya Airforce crew members Senior Sergeant Isaac King’ori Mureithi and Senior Private Trevor Lukwe Mwamuye.
ABORTED FIRST LANDING ATTEMPT
They were pulled out of the burning wreckage by those who were waiting for the leaders, but they suffered serious injuries, including broken limbs and severe burns.
The pilot of the Chinese-built Y-12 that had taken off from the Moi Airbase, Eastleigh, for the one-hour flight, aborted his first landing attempt due to heavy fog, and circled Marsabit town.
His second attempt to land at the military airstrip proved fatal as he realised too late that he was heading for the hill. The plane hit the hill, broke into two, and burst into flames.
It crashed on a hill known to local residents as Kofia Mbaya (bad hat), named after a Tanzanian who used to live there.
The peace talks were to be held at the Marsabit Pastoral Centre. They came just a year after the Turbi massacre, in which 90 people had been killed in a clash between the Borana and the Gabra.
The fight was suspected to have also involved Ethiopian rebels from the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF).
The crash dealt a major blow to peace efforts in the area, given that the communities lived in constant suspicion of one another.
Dr Godana was from the Gabra community, which was perceived by the others as being more Ethiopian than Kenyan because most of their brothers live in Ethiopia. The Gabra often fought with their Borana cousins and the Rendille. Mr Sasura and Dr Galgallo were Boranas while Mr Ngoyoni was a Rendille.
