Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has refuted claims that the late Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ng’eno had a strained relationship with President William Ruto. 

Speaking on Wednesday, March 4, during Ng’eno’s requiem mass, Kindiki stated that Ng’eno was on good terms with Ruto and supported the Head of State.

He recounted an event that the two attended where the late MP offered him advice on how to work with Ruto following his appointment as DP.

“He told me that if I wanted to succeed, I must stand behind President Ruto and support him to deliver for Kenya.

“So, if anybody had any doubt that the late Johana Ng’eno was a friend and supporter of the President, that doubt must be removed today through the witness statement that I am providing,” Kindiki stated.

The DP eulogised Ng’eno, describing him as a humble leader committed to delivering his mandate to the people who elected him.

“I want to agree with those who said that many people may have underrated the intelligence, wit, and leadership quality of Johana Ng’eno,” he stated.

Ruto’s number two promised the people of Emurua Dikirr that the government would ensure all projects envisioned by their former MP would be implemented.

Kindiki further disclosed that the government would cater for the burial expenses of not just the MP but also for the other five occupants of the helicopter crash.

His sentiments were echoed by ODM Party Leader Senator Oburu Odinga, who called out leaders politicising Ng’eno’s death for relevance.

Oburu stated that politicians are just ordinary human beings who could die from accidents like any other Kenyan.

The leaders spoke amid allegations that the late MP could have been silenced because of his strong political opinions.

Former DP Rigathi Gachagua alleged that Ng’eno was the MP in the secretly recorded audio obtained by intelligence services and called for an immediate probe into the helicopter crash.

The state has launched an inquiry to establish what caused the chopper to crash.

Narok Governor Patrick Ole Ntutu has recalled his final phone conversation with the late Emurua Dikirr MP Johana Ng’eno.

Speaking on Wednesday, March 4, he narrated how Ng’eno had invited him to join a bursary issuance event on the day of the tragedy.

“That morning he called me to tell me that he’s going to travel to Nandi but late in the afternoon if I can join him to issue bursaries, checks to the needy students in Kapsasain ward but I told him that I was very far in a place called Maji moto, Narosura,” he said.

Ntutu went on to describe how the late legislator responded with humor, and even offered to fly him to the event.

“And then as normal mheshimiwa Ng’eno laughed and told me that “Governor, I have a chopper, I can pick you and then you can join me later.” Little did I know that was the last day that I was going to talk to my friend and son in law,” he added.

Elsewhere, National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah paid tribute to Ng’eno, describing him as a key figure in advancing the government’s housing agenda through legal expertise.

Ichung’wah said the late MP played a significant role behind the scenes, offering legal counsel and guiding strategy in court.

“Ng’eno, being a legal mind, was actively involved in litigation, advising the counsel appearing in court on how to advance our case. Given the success we have seen in the housing sector, Johana’s name will deserve a full chapter when the history of the housing agenda and the transformation of our country is finally written,” he said.

Siaya Senator Oburu Odinga also reflected on his long-standing relationship with Ng’eno, tracing it back to 2012 and his early political ambitions.

The senator recalled how Ng’eno initially sought to vie for the Emurua Dikirr seat on an ODM ticket before reconsidering his political path.

“I’m here to say bye bye to a young man Ngeno. I knew him in 2012 as he was a close friend of my late brother Raila Odinga. He wanted to contest the Emurua Dikirr seat in an ODM ticket but later came and said he will lose if he contested in an ODM ticket,” he stated.

At the same time, family members recounted the painful final moments of their loved ones who perished in the chopper crash.

The family of Kenya Forest Service (KFS) officer Amos Kipng’etich described his final moments after the aircraft went down, revealing that he passed away 30 minutes after the incident.

“Amos tried to jump out of the aircraft, but it was in vain. He is the one who survived for about 30 minutes, but when he was interrogated, he only asked a question, ‘Where is Mheshimiwa?'” a family representative said.

Ng’eno’s widow, Nayianoi Ntutu, paid an emotional tribute to her husband, reflecting on their life together and the dreams they shared before the fatal crash cut them short.

“Losing you feels like losing the music of my youth; the laughter, the dreams, and the simplicity of believing we have endless times, but even death cannot take what we built,” she said.

Betty Bett, sister-in-law to the late Nick Kosgey who served as Ng’eno’s photographer, remembered him as a hardworking young man whose career had just begun to flourish.

“Nick was a young and ambitious person, and he was very industrious in the work that he did. When Mheshimiwa recognised his work, Nick was very happy. His mother was very happy because she knew that life had begun, not knowing that it was going to be cut short,” she stated.

The brother of the late pilot George Were also honoured his sibling, highlighting his long and distinguished career both in the military and in civilian aviation.

“Our late brother George was an accomplished pilot. He served about 30 years in the military, and he ‘choppered’ so many generals in the military, and when he retired from the army, he became a commercial pilot for about 10 years. In those 10 years, he’s ‘choppered’ many dignitaries we have in the house today,” he noted.