By KARANJA NJOROGE
Nakuru,Kenya:Deputy President William Ruto has intervened in the row pitting Nakuru Governor Kinuthia Mbugua against the County Assembly over appointment of Executive Committee members.
Mr Ruto met the governor and Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) led by Speaker Susan Kihika and Majority Leader Mwaura Njenga at the home of Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri on Sunday in an attempt to resolve the dispute.
The governor has been embroiled in a standoff with MCAs for over two weeks over the swearing in of county government officers who had been rejected by the chamber.
The MCAs have refused to withdraw a Motion to impeach the governor for violating the Constitution, insisting he must first formally revoke the controversial appointments.
melting pot
Speaking after holding talks with the Deputy President, the MCAs agreed to resolve their differences with the governor for the sake of development in the county.
Ruto described Nakuru as Kenya’s melting pot whose stability has an impact on the rest of the country.
“When things go right in Nakuru there is a high chance of the same happening in the rest of the country. If there are too many wrangles in the county, we might lose focus on development,’ he said.
Ruto urged the MCAs to stop ‘fighting’ the governor and instead assist him deliver on his mandate.
The governor, however, downplayed the row and accused the media of blowing the issue out of proportion.
revoke appointments
“Some of the noise you have been hearing are just differences over procedure between the Assembly and the Executive and you should not worry about Nakuru,” Mbugua said.
Sources indicate the governor may revoke the appointments this week to end the row, which has threatened to paralyse the county operations.
Mbugua also defended the huge sums of money set aside by county government for purchase of luxury vehicles in their budgets, saying the move is aimed at facilitating their work.
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“There is a bigger agenda to paint the county government as extravagant as there is nothing unusual about buying vehicles for the Speaker or the Executive Committee to facilitate their movement,” he said.
Njenga said they had resolved their differences with the governor and would work with him.
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