‘We want development, not just State appointments’

Meru Parliamentary Group chairman Kathuri Murungi has differed with his colleagues over calls for appointments to top Government jobs.

The South Imenti MP said while he did not have anything against people from the area being given top State jobs, he would rather leaders from the area pushed President Uhuru Kenyatta to honour the development pledges he made to residents during a tour of the area in March.

According to Mr Murungi, the promises included tarmacking 200 kilometres of roads and construction of 20 dams to supply residents with water for domestic use and irrigation.

The President is also said to have promised to initiate water and sewerage projects in Nkubu, Ruiri and Timau townships.

“These are the promises I would personally want fulfilled before the next General Election,” Murungi said in a telephone conversation yesterday.

On Tuesday, the Meru leaders, who spoke during a rally in Meru North, demanded extra Cabinet Secretary and Principal Secretary positions especially for Nyambene.

Murungi, however, said the appointments would be mere rewards to individuals and would not benefit the hundreds of thousands of Meru people in any way.

“At best, the CS or PS position would only benefit people close to the appointee, while development projects would have a ripple effect on the whole population,” he added.

During the rally on Tuesday, Senator Kiraitu Murungi, Governor Peter Munya and MPs Mithika Linturi (Igembe South), Gideon Mwiti (Imenti Central) and Florence Kajuju (Woman Rep) demanded the State jobs as a precondition for the Meru community joining the Jubilee Alliance Party.

The rally was also attended by Buuri MP Gatobu Kinoti and North Imenti’s Rahim Dawood.

Ms Kajuju said the PS position for Nyambene region was a campaign promise that had not been fulfilled, and should be factored in the ongoing recruitment of principal secretaries.

Linturi, Kiraitu and Munya claimed the region wanted to be assured of their stake in JAP before disbanding the Alliance Party of Kenya and joining the new outfit.

But the South Imenti MP said Jubilee only needed to fulfill the development pledges made by Uhuru for the region to start “singing the JAP tune”. Separately, JAP Vice Chairman David Murathe said they were in talks with Meru leaders over the new outfit.