Anyang' Nyong'o rejects office used by former Governor Jack Ranguma

Jack Ranguma, Anyang' Nyong'o (Photo: Courtesy)

Kisumu Governor Anyang' Nyong'o has rejected office used by his predecessor Jack Ranguma, saying he would not be productive in the office.

Nyong'o has also vowed not to inherit the furniture and other office equipment used by the former county boss, saying he would not be attracted to class, but service to the people.

Instead, the new county CEO will be renovating another office which he said is convenient for him given his position.

This may mean that about Sh25 million used to renovate Ranguma's office and purchase new expensive furniture two years ago may end up to waste.

After taking office as the first governor in the county in 2013, Ranguma avoided the City Hall which belonged to the County and opted for the national government premise; the Former Nyanza Provincial Headquarters building.

The former governor also acquired three other floors from the 16-storey building to house other county staff, which included executive members, chief officers and selected directors.

However, after two years in office, Ranguma decided to relocate his office, that of his deputy and the county secretary to the ninth floor of the same building, which saw the county spend the huge sum of money to renovate the previously abandoned floor and purchase new furniture and equipment.

The former governor even attempted to forcefully take over the building from the national government to make it County Government Headquarters and changed its name to 'Prosperity Building', a move which was met with fierce rebuttal by the then Nyanza Regional Commissioner Francis Mutie.

Ranguma would finally give up and accept few floors 'donated' to him by the national government.

And with the building having a single escalator reserved for VIPs, the common public seeking services from the Governor's office have had to bear with the challenge of climbing the steep stairs in order to access the Governor's office.

But after Nyong'o swearing in on Monday, renovation work started at the second floor of the same building, where staff from the national and county government have been housed for the last two years.

A spot check by The Standard revealed that the staff were being moved to other floors to give room for the new county boss and his deputy, with the duo set to occupy their offices starting Monday.

Nyong'o confirmed on Wednesday that he had moved the Governor's office from the ninth to the second floor to enable him work effectively.

"I do not like the ninth floor office. I am more productive in the second floor. Must I suffer in the ninth floor just because a lot of money was used to renovate it? My work is more important than the corruption that informed the renovating of the ninth floor office," said Nyong'o.

Nyong'o, who was among the people who criticised Ranguma for 'running away from electorates' by moving his office from the second to the ninth floor, reiterated that as a Governor, he has to be accessible to the electorates, and that the second floor was more accessible to the people than the ninth floor.

Nyong'o dismissed arguments of possible waste of resources through repeated relocation of the Governor's office, saying his focus was quality service to the people.

"If somebody tells you that Sh100 million was used to build hell and Sh1 million used to build heaven, would you go to hell because it is expensive?" posed Nyong'o, adding that he will use the simple furniture he finds in the offices in the second floor.

The building also hosts Huduma Centre, County Commissioner, among other local, regional and international agencies.