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President Uhuru Kenyatta’s extensive tour of Kakamega and Bungoma counties, areas perceived as CORD strongholds, has sharply divided the region’s leaders.
The President will deliver what is perhaps the most comprehensive package of development goodies to the people of Bungoma and Kakamega as he seeks to endear himself ahead of the 2017 presidential elections.
In the tour that begins today, President Kenyatta will give a charter to Kibabii University, commission a tarmac road linking the county to the Uganda border, launch a water project in the area and open an immigration one-stop border post.
His visit to the region comes at a time when the political future of CORD luminary Moses Wetang’ula, who is the area Senator, hangs in the balance. Wetang’ula is waiting to see whether the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) will delete his name from the voters register after the Speaker of the Senate gazetted a court ruling that found him to have committed a criminal offence by bribing voters.
Should the IEBC struck his name out of the voters register, Wetang’ula will be rendered ineligible to run for political office in 2017.
And as the President tours the region, it is interesting to note that Water and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa, a long time rival of Wetang’ula, is the one playing the lead role.
CORD fears that the president’s visit could be a scheme to win the Western vote to the Jubilee coalition. The visit also comes when the President is leading the amalgamation of all Jubilee affiliate parties into one entity, among them Wamalwa’s New Ford Kenya (NFK), next month.
The visit, in which the President will spend the night at Kakamega State Lodge for the first time in order to make a closer engagement with local leaders, has not been received well by some local leaders. Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale has asked President Kenyatta to concentrate on development and stop those in his entourage from playing politics. “Let him know that we have alternative to counter him should he turn his development function into an agenda of imposing his preferred candidates to us,” said Khalwale.
Last week, the outspoken Senator linked Wamalwa to the troubles facing Wetang’ula and cautioned that he would not succeed in his schemes.
“I formed NFK and left it to Wamalwa. He is using it to frustrate Wetang’ula and I assure him that by 2017, NFK will be no more,” Khalwale said last weekend. The outspoken senator said he has not received an invitation to attend the President’s function.
The President will also launch water projects in Mumias, Bungoma, Kapenguria and Tambach in Elgeiyo Marakwet County courtesy of Wamalwa’s invitation. Unlike the last time when the President visited Western, opposition MPs like Budalangi’s Ababu Namwamba, who played a lead role in the last tour, have this time been left out with Wamalwa, supported by Bungoma Governor Kenneth Lusaka, taking charge.
Bag of goodies
Governor Lusaka told The Standard on Saturday that Bungoma was ready for the President and the goodies he brings. “I have been looking forward to Kibabii getting a chatter to be a fully-fledged university. Lwakhakha-Chwele road, which traverses all the way to Uganda, will also be commissioned for tarmacking as well as Lwakhakha border getting a customs and immigration office to make it a one stop border point,” said Lusaka.
Namwamba, who during Uhuru’s last visit to the region was allowed to address masses after Wetang’ula in Mumias and after Governor Lusaka in Kakamega, said there was no need to play retrogressive politics.
He said it was instructive to engage the government constructively for the good of democracy and development of Western Kenya. “I don’t see the need of throwing in destructive politics whenever people of Western stand to benefit,” said Namwamba.
He advised against linking the President’s visit to Wetang’ula’s woes, saying it is a judicial matter. He also asked Governor Sospeter Ojaamong not to link Wetangula’s woes to Jubilee. Ojaamong had said the President was not welcome in Western because it was a CORD zone.
Namwamba also said he had not received an invite to attend the President’s function at Kibabii. “When he visited Mumias last time, we agreed to be part of the visit because we were consulted through the Western Parliamentary Caucus,” said Ababu.
He said although a more inclusive approach should have been used to get all leaders on board, the President can chose his own style of operation.
He went on: “But let it not be misconceived. I am a point man of Raila in Western and has never desired anything near Jubilee. Western is in ODM and CORD to stay by choice. I will not be in the President’s tour even if the invite was to come because I had prior engagements elsewhere.”
National Assembly Minority Deputy Chief Whip and Kiminini MP Chris Wamalwa, however, said the opposition will be at hand to receive the President. He said the President is free to visit any part of the country and initiate development projects.
But the Ford Kenya lawmaker cautioned the President against weakening the opposition through pushing for the removal of Wetang’ula.
“We don’t want the Jubilee government to impose leaders on us. We are eager to hear the President’s comment about Senator Wetang’ula but let him not dictate the Jubilee agenda to us,’’ he said.
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