Just days after its release, Kasongo The “Wan-Tam” School Captain & Other Stories by Steve Biko Omondi is already creating waves across Kenya’s literary and political landscapes.
The self-published collection of short stories has garnered widespread attention for its daring critique of Kenya’s political climate and is now being picked up by top booksellers including Nuria Bookstore and Text Book Centre.
Through deeply symbolic and gripping narratives, Omondi offers readers a mirror to the nation’s systemic failures—speaking directly to a disillusioned youth population eager for ethical leadership and change.
A School Captain as a Symbol of a Nation
The title story, Kasongo The “Wan-Tam” School Captain, is set in Unity Plains Secondary School—a fictional institution meant to reflect Kenya’s national identity and promises of unity.
Beneath the surface, however, lies a simmering pot of tribalism, manipulation, and leadership betrayal.
Kasongo, a modest, religious newcomer, gains popularity after speaking out against injustice in student leadership. Ironically, once elevated to school captain—a symbolic ‘president’—he succumbs to the same oppressive systems he once opposed.
The story is a powerful metaphor for Kenya’s cycle of leadership failure: leaders rise on reformist promises, only to betray public trust once in office.
“The school is Kenya. The students are the citizens. The school captain? Our presidency in all its tragic repetition,” says one early reviewer.
Inspired by Protest: From Campus to Country
According to Omondi, the idea for the book germinated during his tenure as a student leader at the University of Nairobi, but was refined during the massive 2024 anti-Finance Bill protests.
“I saw a young generation fight for their right to be heard… but politicians completely missed the point of the demonstrations,” Omondi reflects.
These protests, led largely by young people, brought the country to a standstill and exposed a hunger for real reform—a sentiment that flows strongly through Omondi’s stories.
During a recent visit to a public university, Omondi listened as students expressed how politically suffocated they felt in a system dominated by elite interests and exclusion.
More Than Protest: Culture, Roots, and Redemption
While political critique forms the backbone of the book, Omondi’s storytelling goes beyond.
In The Drum Beneath Got Naya, one of the standout stories in the collection, a young man named Oyugi wuod Madoro rejects a foreign job opportunity to return home and serve his rural community in Asego Kanyada.
“This story is deeply personal. It’s dedicated to my father and grandfather, whose wisdom continues to guide me,” says Omondi.
Themes of identity, cultural pride, nepotism in public appointments, and even religious exploitation are woven delicately into the narratives—handled with nuance and bold symbolism.
‘Kasongo’ and ‘Wan-Tam’ as Cultural Shorthand
The book’s title itself is a nod to Kenya’s evolving political language. ‘Wan-Tam’, a now-popular catchphrase, and ‘Kasongo’, once an ordinary name, have both taken on layered meanings—ranging from resistance and defiance to betrayal and political theatre.
“I didn’t plan for this kind of traction,” Omondi says. “To some, Kasongo is a warning. To others, he’s a hero. Either way, I hope people start asking hard questions about where we’re headed as a nation.”
Speaking Out Despite Censorship
In a time when activists, artists, and digital creators face increasing crackdowns, Omondi remains defiant.
“This is literature. If you love Kenya, you shouldn’t be afraid of books like this,” he says firmly.
By day, Omondi runs an engineering firm and has authored The Principles of Software Engineering. But Kasongo The “Wan-Tam” School Captain marks his creative debut—and positions him as one of the most promising and fearless literary voices of Kenya’s new generation.