Tiriki elders invoke curse against anyone linked to Jirongo’s death

Tiriki elders have invoked curses on anyone who may have had a hand in the death of former Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo.

While speaking after visiting Cyrus Jirongo’s home in Gigiri, where they donned traditional attire to pay their condolences to their son, who was a Tiriki and born in Vihiga, the elders showered praise on the father of 38, describing him as the face of the Tiriki, a sub-tribe of the broader Luhya community, whose most norms closely resemble those of the Kalenjin community.

One elder, identified as Wandabuli, who donned religious attire synonymous with the African Divine Church, which is domiciled in major parts of Western Kenya, in his prayer told Jirongo’s spirit that if there was anyone involved in his demise, he should pursue them relentlessly and deny them peace.

With most Luhya communities traditionally burying their dead lying sideways facing their believed place of origin, he urged that Jirongo be laid to rest lying supine so that he could continue pursuing his killers.

“If there is anybody involved in Jirongo’s death, we tell him not to rest and to lie supine and follow that killer to the grave,” prayed elder Wandabuli.

Another elder, Thomas Ingara, who is in charge of Tiriki traditions and rituals and who led the delegation, portrayed Jirongo as the pride of the community, noting that many looked up to him.

He went ahead to declare that should anyone have been involved in his death, the blood of the Tiriki would follow them to the grave.

“Mimi ni mwifadhi mila na tamaduni za Mtiriki. Jirongo alipita kwa mikono yangu hii. Jirongo ndio macho ya Watiriki. Sisi pahali tuko tunafikirianga Jirongo pekee yake. Kwa bahati mbaya ametoka katikati yetu, lakini hatuwezi kubadilisha chochote. Mdomo wa Watiriki au damu ya Watiriki itazungumza yote,” Thomas Ingara said.

His death

This comes at a time when family and friends are demanding answers over the death of Cyrus Jirongo, who died following a tragic accident in Nakuru County at Karai along the Nairobi–Malaba Highway.

An autopsy was conducted on Jirongo’s body by government pathologist Johansen Oduor, who indicated that the late politician died from blunt force trauma to the chest, with injuries to the spine and internal bleeding. The late Jirongo will be buried in Lumakanda on December 30, 2025.

The elders’ visit forms part of Tiriki cultural norms conducted on the death that are likely to be conducted on Jirongo

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