FORGED PAPERS, FAILED LEADERSHIP: THE UNBECOMING OF KISUMU CITY MANAGER ABALA WANGA

The iron fist that once ruled Kisumu’s streets with bulldozers and demolition orders now trembles under the weight of scandal. Michael Abala Wanga, the man who styled himself as the savior of Kenya’s third-largest city, stands accused of building his empire on a foundation of lies, forgery, and corruption that stretches back years.

The fall has been swift and spectacular. A court warrant of arrest now hangs over his head after he failed to appear before the Milimani Anti-Corruption Court, choosing instead to run from the very accountability he once demanded from others. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission has laid bare a web of deceit so intricate that it raises disturbing questions about how deep the rot runs in Kenya’s county governments.

Wanga faces four charges including forgery, fraudulent acquisition of public property, uttering false documents, and presenting forged certificates , allegations that strike at the heart of his meteoric rise to power. The once-feared city manager who earned the nickname “bulldozer” for his ruthless demolitions now faces accusations that he used forged academic certificates to secure his appointment as Kisumu City Manager .

But the deception doesn’t end there. In perhaps the most brazen display of impunity, investigators claim that he falsified records to include a female companion, described as a non-staff member and his girlfriend, in an official delegation to Lagos, Nigeria, from July 8 to 12, 2024 . The woman was disguised as a county employee, allowing Wanga to siphon public funds for what amounted to a romantic getaway on the taxpayer’s dime.

The details are staggering. Wanga allegedly altered a letter dated June 10, 2024, purporting to invite him to the CLEAN Air Forum in Lagos, and acquired Sh283,402 in excess facilitation payments from the Kisumu County Government after presenting the forged letter as authentic . But prosecutors say the appetite for fraud ran deeper. The city administrator is alleged to be facing additional charges that include fraudulently acquiring public property worth Sh8,701,091 from the Kisumu County Government .

The academic fraud allegations cut to the bone of Wanga’s carefully constructed public persona. He is accused of forging a Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education certificate showing a mean grade of C+, allegedly issued by the Kenya National Examinations Council . The Kenya National Examinations Council confirmed the documents were not authentic in a letter to the EACC dated January 27, 2022 , meaning Wanga may have been operating under false credentials for years.

This is a man who held himself up as the embodiment of order and discipline. In March 2021, traders in the lakeside city began to experience the effects of his leadership when he demolished shops that had been built on paths and drainage systems, giving shop owners just five minutes to remove their goods from containers before demolition . He styled the destruction as a beautification project, a grand vision to transform Kisumu into the Singapore of East Africa.

As the demolitions continued, his influence grew to the point where residents joked that they might forget their MPs’ names, but Abala Wanga’s name was on their lips . He banned politicians from putting up billboards, demolished buildings with impunity, and spoke grandly of leaving a legacy. All the while, if prosecutors are to be believed, his own credentials were fabricated, his travel documents forged, and public funds diverted for personal pleasure.

The irony is suffocating. This was the man who in 2021 declared he was ready to die fighting land grabbers and those who fraudulently acquired public property. Now he stands accused of being exactly what he claimed to fight against. The demolitions that left thousands of traders without livelihoods, the heavy-handed tactics that drew protests and burning tires in the streets, the righteous fury with which he pursued his mandate, all of it now appears tainted by hypocrisy.

Wanga held several senior positions before he was appointed City Manager, including Chief Executive Officer of the Lake Region Economic Bloc, Secretary of Kisumu Lakefront Development Corporation, and CEO of the Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board . If the forgery allegations are proven, how many of these positions were secured through fraudulent means? How much public money has been paid out in salaries and benefits to a man who may never have qualified for the jobs in the first place?

The EACC has made clear that those found guilty of using forged documents to secure public employment will not only face prosecution but will be required to refund all salaries and benefits received. For Wanga, who has occupied senior positions for years, that figure could run into tens of millions of shillings.

The investigation reveals a pattern that extends beyond one man’s greed. The EACC has disclosed that similar cases of academic fraud are under investigation against a Kisumu County Executive Committee member, senior officials of Kisumu County Assembly, and officials from Vihiga County Government, Maseno University, and Kaimosi University. The scandal threatens to expose a systemic culture of forgery and deception that has infected multiple levels of governance.

For the people of Kisumu, the revelations are a bitter pill. Many supported the demolitions, believing in Wanga’s vision of a transformed city. They endured the chaos, the loss of livelihoods, the heavy-handed tactics, all because they trusted in the legitimacy of his mission. Now they must grapple with the possibility that they were misled by a man whose very qualifications were allegedly fabricated.

The political implications are equally devastating. The scandal threatens to derail Wanga’s planned bid to contest the Gem parliamentary seat . His ambitions to climb the political ladder, to translate his notoriety as city manager into electoral success, now lie in ruins. Who would vote for a man facing charges of forgery, fraud, and abuse of office?

The case is scheduled for mention on November 25, 2025, but the damage to Wanga’s reputation is already done. The man who once wielded a bulldozer against the city’s traders now faces the full weight of the law bearing down on him. The demolition this time is of his own making, a spectacular implosion built on a foundation of forged papers and stolen public funds.

In the end, the story of Abala Wanga serves as a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked power and the importance of verification. For years, he operated with near-total authority, his decisions final, his word law. Few questioned his credentials, fewer still had the courage to investigate. The result is a scandal that has shaken public confidence in county leadership and exposed the vulnerabilities in Kenya’s public service vetting processes.

The bulldozer has been stopped. The question now is how many others like him remain in positions of power, their credentials unverified, their conduct unchecked, their fraud yet to be discovered. For Kisumu, and for Kenya, the unbecoming of Abala Wanga is just the beginning of a long-overdue reckoning.