Kenyan MP Charles Charles Ong’ondo Were has been shot dead in a shooting incident in Nairobi on Wednesday evening, APA learnt on Thursday.
One of the gunmen on a motorcycle shot him at point blank range as he was in his car which was trailed by Were’s attackers moments before.
Ngong Road where the killing took place is rigged with security cameras which police hope would help them determine the identities of the assassins who fled the scene.
According to the Kenyan police, the MP may have been the victim of a premeditated assassination.
“The nature of this crime appears to be both targeted and predetermined,” police spokesperson Muchiri Nyaga said.
The incident came barely two months after Were, an opposition member of parliament claimed that he was a marked man for assassination.
Were died shortly after being rushed to a Nairobi hospital by his driver and bodyguard who were both unhurt.
Expressing his condolence, President William Ruto said Were’s killing would be thoroughly investigated with a view to bringing to book anyone found culpable.
Members of parliament have paid tribute to Were as one of the staunchest defenders of human rights.
Were belonged to Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement and was the MP for Kasipul constituency in western Kenya.
Reacting to the murder, Odinga described Were as “a gallant son of the soil!” whose death has robbed the country of an illustrious politician who defended the interest of ordinary Kenyans.
WN/as/APA