Celebrated Kenyan musician Suzanna Owiyo called out the Kisumu County Government (headed by Governor Anyang' Nyong'o) and the Ministry of Devolution on Monday, January 23, over the non-payment of artists who performed at the Africities Summit.
According to Owiyo, all the artists who performed, including herself, were yet to be paid since May 2022 when the event took place. Over seven months have lapsed since then.
The musician decried the delays that the artists who performed at the event had been subjected to adding that her efforts to get her payment was futile.
"I am sharing this because I want to raise a concern in regards to the Africities summit that took place last year in Kisumu sometime in May.
“On behalf of other artists who performed during the summit, I have decided to speak out on this matter because I feel that somebody somewhere must take action,” Owiyo lamented.
She added that the persons charged with the responsibility of contracting the artists who performed during the summit asked them to wait but had since not wired the payments.
“The response I keep getting is to wait for another week or another month. It has been several months since and the payments are still delayed,” Owiyo disclosed.
The singer further appealed to the Kisumu Governor to honour the artists who performed by paying their dues.
“I am appealing to the County Government of Kisumu and the national government in charge to just pay the artists who performed.
“We rendered our services and we should be paid what we are owed. We are not asking for too much,” Owiyo added.
The Africities summit hosted in Kisumu in May 2022 was a dialogue platform that brought together African ministers, mayors, leaders, and elected officials of local and regional governments as well as civil society organizations among other economic and development partners. The event happens every three years,
Kisumu County underwent many changes during the summit including a ban by the city Manager Abala Wanga that barred politicians from erecting banners and billboards in Kisumu CBD.
We cannot have politicians putting up posters all over town, especially on the newly refurbished roundabouts and Oginga Odinga Street. We have to maintain cleanliness and order in our city," Wanga stated.
