Exalted python Omieri on display 30 years after death
After more than 30 years, Kisumu residents will have the opportunity to view the remains of famous python Omieri, which was taken to Kenya National Museum headquarters in 1987.
The remains were taken to Kisumu for the five-day Kenya National Commission for UNESCO third national cultural celebrations at Kenyatta Sportsgrounds.
Omieri died many years ago while undergoing treatment in Nairobi following severe burns it sustained. Its remains, well preserved, will be taken to Nyakach subcounty - homeland - for three days before being moved to Kisumu National Museum until the end of October, then back to Nairobi.
Hundreds of Kisumu residents yesterday flocked to sportsground to view the remains of Omieri in a newly built traditional grass-thatched hut.
Ruoth Ogai, an elder in Nyakach Jack Okong’o praised the government for allowing Kisumu people to see the python. Omieri is a snake rooted in Luo mythology. According to ancient Luo folklore, Omieri, a large snake that lives in Lake Victoria, appears periodically on land in times of drought to summon rain.
The villagers do not kill pythons near their homes as the snake is revered. “Omieri” is the Luo name for the female African python that was found in 1987 in Wasare village, Pap Onditi in Nyakach subcounty, Kisumu along the shores of Lake Victoria.
It was found by a man identified as Ongere and his wife, in their farm where it was brooding. It measured 5.3 metres long and weighed 58kg.
The people of Nyakach fed Omieri on goats and chicken as it was deemed sacred. They developed more interest and curiosity in the python as they believed it would bring their community good luck.
That year, Nyakach recorded the highest amount of rainfall ever and there was plenty of harvest.
For the community, Omieri was a symbol of change, an ancestor and decisive power promising a better future. Many people travelled from far away to see the python before the government took it away for conservation and research.
They paid fees which would be used to fund the snake’s diet. For some traders it was a rare business opportunity that enabled them to sell food to the people who visited.