Vihiga County elders crown Natembeya as regional spokesman at Mudavadi’s doorstep
By Mabonga Makhanu, September 27, 2025Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya has been coronated as the region’s spokesman.
The event, which is currently ongoing, took place on Saturday, September 27, 2025, at the doorstep of Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi in Sabatia Constituency, a place he first represented in Parliament after his initial election to replace his late father, Moses Mudavadi, who died while still serving as the Member of Parliament for the area. Sabatia Constituency is also Mudavadi’s birthplace, which houses the graves of both his parents.
In a colourful ceremony, elders from the Vihiga communities converged to crown Natembeya, whose political star seems to be rising, as the spokesman of the entire Western region.
He was handed a whisk and a staff to symbolise his new role as leader, with the community now looking up to him for direction. After receiving the instruments of power, he lifted them up to signify his readiness and acceptance of the new status.
The event was conducted in accordance with Luhya tradition, which requires that a ceremony of such magnitude be held past 3:00 pm, a time when cattle are returning from the grazing fields.
This made the governor move quickly since he had an eventful day, making several stopovers beginning at Luanda Market, then Mbale, and finally Mundete in Sabatia, where the elders were waiting to bless him and permit him to traverse the country in search of support from other communities.
Speaking earlier, Natembeya stated that the crowning by Vihiga elders was just the beginning, adding that it would mark the starting point of his journey across the entire Western region, with the final coronation set to be held in Kakamega, where the whole community would formally throw its weight behind him
Similar events in the past
Similar events have taken place in the past. In the run-up to the 2013 elections, elders in Bungoma coronated former President Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, and Eugene Wamalwa by issuing each of them a spear, symbolising leadership, with the understanding that once one leader completed his term, he would hand over to the next.
Eugene Wamalwa has maintained that the dream is still alive, noting that two spears have already been used those of Uhuru and Ruto and that only one that is remaining is his.