Mike Msella, brother to the late veteran Luo Ohangla musician Tony Ndiema, has addressed allegations of misappropriating funds raised for his funeral. The musician was laid to rest on August 5 at his ancestral home in Homa Bay County after succumbing to illness.
A total of KSh 3,930,824 was collected from artists, fans, local leaders, and a paybill account to cover funeral costs. The funds were used for various expenses including catering, tent hire, transport, videography, and security.
Breakdown of Funeral Expenses
- Catering: KSh 1,678,403
- Tent hire: KSh 630,500
- Transport: KSh 491,337
- Videography: KSh 150,000
- Sound equipment: KSh 140,000
- Security: KSh 134,000
- Candle lighting: KSh 107,964
- Morgue, postmortem, coffin transport: KSh 103,000
- Grave site expenses: KSh 59,800
The total expenditure was KSh 3,932,074, slightly exceeding the amount collected by KSh 1,250. Controversy arose over KSh 321,770 listed as home repairs, which many questioned as unrelated to funeral costs.
Msella Responds to Accusations
Msella, who was part of the funeral committee and had the paybill account registered in his name, denied any wrongdoing. He emphasized that he never directly handled the funds or controlled the account despite it being under his name.
"How can I be accountable for cash I never handled? How can I be responsible for things I only knew about after they happened? I do not have a single M-Pesa transaction that went through me," he said in a Facebook statement.
Msella expressed the emotional toll of being singled out and urged for fairness and transparency, stating, "All I'm asking for is fairness. Let the truth come out." He closed his statement with the Dholuo phrase "Ling loyo duoko", meaning "Let the truth prevail."
