Hon. Millie Grace Akoth Odhiambo Mabona, a force to reckon

That’s her mantra, just like her signature hairstyle.

Millie Grace Akoth Odhiambo Mabona – fondly referred to as Amilo Gesa Gesa – is a double-edged politician; when confronted with either a physical duel or a verbal outburst, she’ll roll her sleeve or sharpen her tongue, and you’d not want to imagine the outcome.

Fierce to the bone and controversial to to the core, she never goes down without a fight. In her world, sexism, chauvinism, and misogyny have no place and no one understands this better than the disgraced former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko.

During the funeral ceremony of the late Kibra MP Ken Okoth, a debacle ensued when Sonko sensationally revealed the extra-marital affairs of the deceased, sparking a nationwide backlash from those who felt that he had crossed the red line.

This snowballed into slut shaming of Millie Mabona by Sonko after she told him off.

And since she takes no prisoners, including Shimo La Tewa escapees, she publicly reminded Sonko verbally and through an article on Facebook that indeed she loved and enjoyed sex; often has it when opportunity avails itself; and that she is never ashamed of that fact.

Her penchant for controversy would hit a crescendo, when, in 2016, she blocked parliament entrance, decrying police highhandedness after erecting a barrier along Parliament Road during the controversial Elections Law Bill debate session.

She admonished President Uhuru Kenyatta, claiming that he shouldn’t compare himself to Raila Odinga, because she was even better than him (read Uhuru).

After the 2018 handshake, they closed ranks with Uhuru and would later be seen in public display of political affection.

Born in 1966 to Harrison Odhiambo and Damaris Auma, she attended Homa Bay Primary School before proceeding to St. Francis Rang’ala and later to Limuru Girls. In 1986, she joined University of Nairobi to purse undergraduate degree in law and graduated in 1990.

She began her career at the Office of the Attorney General before gravitating towards human rights law, with keen interest on children and women. She was the founder and director of CRADLE, an organisation that places premium on advocating for children’s rights.

In 1999, she was appointed the Chairperson of the Coalition on Violence Against Women Kenya and her stint saw her growing into a consummate children and women’s rights activist.

Later, she married Magugu Mabona, a Zimbabwean, from whom she acquired her last name – Mabona. Open about her inability to conceive naturally, she has given face and dignity to the fraternity of women with fertility problems.

She was thrust into public limelight when she participated in the constitutional making process of 2005 as a delegate at the Bomas of Kenya, which later earned her a parliamentary nomination by ODM in 2007.

Thereafter, she contested for MP in 2013 and won.

However, in 2015, she was branded a mole in ODM and threatened with disciplinary action and expulsion by John Mbadi for failing to toe the party line and support the current Homa Bay Senator, Moses Kajwang, in a by-election occasioned the mysterious death of his brother, the firebrand Otieno Kajwang.

And at the height of the 2017 election, her bodyguard, Kennedy Okore was run over by a vehicle when her supporters and those of her opponent, James Akali, clashed at Urinda Primary School polling station in a fierce contest for Suba North MP.

She is credited for two crucial bills: Victim Protection and In-Vitro Fertilization Bills.

The former seeks to protect victims along the chain of the criminal justice system through equipping them with information and support services. The latter aims at entrenching the right of women, and by extension couples, to seek assisted reproductive services.

For her contributions in the governance scene, she has received numerous awards, including YWCA Democracy Award and Eve Woman of the Year.

Yesterday, she was celebrating her birthday. Belated happy birthday wishes Suba’s finest and fiercest.