This archive report was first published on 26 August 2019.
On August 26, 2019, West Pokot Governor Prof John Lonyangapuo made headlines when he spoke at the flagging-off of the inaugural shipment of Kenyan crude oil from the port of Mombasa.
Speaking to President Uhuru Kenyatta and other guests, Governor Lonyangapuo said his county had ensured top-notch security for the oil consignment, implying that the security was provided by his people.
“By the way, vile ndungu yangu kutoka Turkana ameongea hapa hakusema kwamba wale wametupea security ya kutosha kwa hiyo trucks ni watu wa West Pokot. Kwa hivyo sisi tunaongoja mbavu, wewe kata mguu, wengine waende na kichwa na ngozi lakini sisi mbavu,” Lonyangapuo said amid laughter.
The shipment, which marked Kenya's entry into the league of oil-exporting nations, consisted of 200,000 barrels of crude oil harvested from the Turkana oil fields by Tullow Oil.
A Chinese company, Chemchina, bought the first batch of the Kenyan crude oil at Sh 1.2 billion.
