Dr Wameyo: Humble vet who loved his job and life

Dr Kenneth Wameyo, the University of Nairobi trained veterinary surgeon who died last week and will be buried tomorrow, was a big, ebullient man with a big name and an even bigger heart.

Born to the first African obstetrician/gynaecologist in Kenya, Dr Elon Willis Wameyo – later Mumias MP and long serving Health assistant minister – and Mwalimu Joyce Wameyo, Kenneth was a child of privilege. His parents studied at Maseno School and Alliance Girls, then among the premier schools that raised men and women who assumed senior positions in government shortly before and after independence.

Indeed his father counted among his friends Mwai Kibaki, Vice President and, later, President of Kenya, with whom he studied at Makerere.

Yet the young Wameyo was the simplest of beings, a pointer, perhaps, to the manner he was raised. His father, despite holding senior government positions for close to 50 years, was not, unlike many of his peers, fabulously rich.

There are no vast ranches, acres of real estate, and huge chunks of money in foreign banks or company shares in Dr Elon Willis Wameyo’s name. There is no record of his children fighting over his estate in court either.

A professional’s professional, the senior Wameyo seered in his children the fire of public service and raised them to be professionals in their own right. They went to public schools all the way to university, including, for the older ones, a stint at the dreaded but mandatory pre-university NYS, when the old man could easily have pulled strings to save them the agony.

As a high school student, Kenneth worked holidays in his father’s clinic in Mombasa, accompanied him during farm visits upcountry and interned at Mumias Sugar Company after his A Levels when his peers were most likely painting the town red.

Village folks

These experiences seem to have rooted him firmly to the ground, making him at ease in the high society circles that he trod as a senior veterinary surgeon, and equally at home mingling with the humble village folks that his father represented in Parliament. 

This is not to suggest Kenneth was a boring village pumpkin. Far from it! He loved good music, fine dining and the clinking of wine glasses. He ate life with a big spoon. His greatest magic lay in a constant desire to learn new things – fiddling with ideas, sharing knowledge, building networks, innovating and always, always, serving.

Siblings called him Papa. They describe a big brother who, like all men, had his imperfections, but never shirked duty. They describe an avid reader; very organised; a loyal and faithful friend who has remained close with Standard One classmates; a good brother with a big a heart and big arms. Kenneth seemed to be always reaching out, touching hearts, helping, building, spreading cheer and laughter.

Dr Kenneth Wameyo was the veterinarian who dabbled in marketing, media and communications. A respected leader in local veterinary circles whose influence spread across the East African region; a man who counted among his friends, media personalities, politicians, professionals, rural folk and an army of people on social media and radio listeners who embraced his friendship, without ever setting eyes on him.

Not surprisingly, as a veterinary professional, his passion bent towards pets and animal welfare – again demonstrating an innate desire to protect the weak and vulnerable. He was a permanent fixture at livestock related awareness drives and education campaigns.

In private conversations with this writer, he expressed a concern about the small number of government employed veterinary professionals serving wananchi at the grassroots.

He worried that to a great extent, the average Kenyan livestock farmer was groping in the dark with quacks, robbed of the guidance of professional vets and that, unknown to meat lovers, Kenya’s livestock herds could not sustain our population without the influx of livestock from Somalia that perennially overrun Tsavo East and West National Parks.

When the big man fell, Kenyans on Twitter dedicated a hash tag to eulogise a man they had never met. The mourning spread to Facebook, and Radio Maisha observed a moment of silence for “our number one diehard fan”.

In a sea of tributes, lawyer Donald Kipkorir’s was, perhaps, the most poignant: “Dr. Kenneth Wameyo was a giant of a man ... He humanised Veterinary Medicine for netizens. We never met physically but we chatted regularly like best friends ... He loved Kenya, a Kenya for all. We know you are in paradise taking care of heavenly pets.”

That was Dr Kenneth Wakungwi Wameyo.