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One of the lawyers who defended soldiers implicated in the 1982 attempted coup has died.
Until his death, Martin Otieno Opiacha was a distinguished legal brain in the land. His nephew John Oketch said Opiacha was diagnosed with lymphoma - a form of cancer and died while undergoing treatment at Coptic Hospital. He was 68.
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Bungoma senator and Ford Kenya party leader Wetang'ula eulogised Opiacha as one of Kenya's most prominent yet least known sons. “Opiacha was a man of great courage and distinguished legal mind. After the 1982 coup, senior lawyers could not handle those cases but he (Opiacha) was among those who represented the soldiers,” said Wetang'ula.
Mr Opiacha, Wetang'ula, Gitobu Imanyara and George Oraro were some of the lawyers who represented soldiers implicated in the failed coup.
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Yesterday, young lawyers and professionals from Yimbo in Siaya County eulogised Opiacha as a role model. Opiacha's village boasts some of the best legal minds in the country, including Prof PLO Lumumba, Lady Justice Hanna Okwengu and retired judge Justice Andrew Hayanga.
