The chairman of the Luo Council of Elders Odungi Randa has decried the shrinking population of the community.
Randa blamed the predicament on the negative effects of modern pop culture including drugs and substance abuse.
He also attributed the situation to adoption of the western lifestyles such as family planning that now threaten to size of the Luo nation.
The 89-year-old said he was planning to get a fifth wife.
Randa expressed fears that the dwindling numbers would prevent the community from ascending to any meaningful national leadership positions.
He spoke at Huma Primary School in Kisumu during the installation of Mzee Ajiki Onduke as the guardian of the Luo community and an elder of Kawango clan.
“I want to tell our people that the population of the Luo community has dwindled and they are now endangered, yet the question is why? We have many women, so what could be wrong? Yet ascending to leadership is a question of numbers. Luos need to target at being over 5 million in the next two years,” he said.
Randa castigated women who practice family planning, which he blamed for decline of the Luo population.
“It doesn't matter the kind of wealth you have amassed but when a woman dies the only question posed is always how many children have been left behind. That's why I am 89 years and planning to marry my fifth wife,” Randa remarked.
The women leaders attending the function supported Randa’s sentiments, urging the Luo nation to increase in population so they can claim their rightful share in power.
“We did returns of new births and deaths and in Luo land the deaths far outweigh the births,” said Mary Aluoch, a village midwife.
Kisumu West MP Rosa Buyu and several MCAs attended the event.