Jubilee Party headache as more hopefuls roll up sleeves to unseat Governor Kinuthia Mbugua

As the countdown to the 2017 General Election begins, the race to unseat Governor Kinuthia Mbugua is taking shape.

Already, three senior politicians are laying down their strategies to win the seat.

The entry of former National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) chairman Lee Kinyanjui has thrown the Jubilee Party (JP) deeper into political dilemma, as all the aspirants including incumbent Mbugua, are eyeing its ticket.

Kinyanjui, whose three-years at the helm of NTSA ended on September 28, says he asked the President not to renew his term so he could concentrate on campaigns.

“I have indicated to the President that I want to focus on launching my gubernatorial campaign. I have conducted an independent survey and my chances to unseat Governor Mbugua are high,” he told The Standard on Sunday.

Political observers are predicting a battle of the titans between Mbugua and his rivals, who so far include Kinyanjui, Senator James Mungai and Nacada chairman John Mututho.

Kinyanjui served as Nakuru Town MP and Assistant Roads minister between 2007 and 2013 in the Grand Coalition government.

Mr Mututho is a former Naivasha MP and was recently appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta to head the Transport Licensing Appeals Tribunal.

“If you look at my legislative record at the National Assembly and my achievements as Naivasha MP, then you will understand how much capable I am to serve as the governor for Nakuru,” he said in a recent interview.

The politician has been critical of Mbugua’s administration, claiming the incumbent has failed to spur socio-economic growth.

“Mbugua’s government has been riddled with allegations of corruption and non-performance,” he said.

Early campaigns

Senator Mungai has shifted his political ambitions to the gubernatorial post.

The senator does not see eye to eye with Mbugua due to his persistent criticism of the governor’s administration, which he says is riddled with corruption and rampant mismanagement of resources.

“I have not seen a flag-ship project that can transform the lives of the people,” he said

The three leaders have engaged in early campaigns – forming teams and meeting interest groups. They have separately condemned alleged corruption and mismanagement of public finances by the county government.

Speaking to The Standard on Sunday recently, Kinyanjui said other counties that receive less allocation from the national government have initiated key projects compared to Nakuru that received Sh14 billion in the current financial year.

“Look at a county like Wajir, which has done very well compared to Nakuru, yet it receives a third of what Nakuru gets annually,” he said.

Kinyanjui said his focus is to empower Nakuru residents to get decent livelihoods through meaningful development projects.

“There is no one capital project that has been initiated for the past four years to transform the peoples’ lives,” he said.

Feeling the heat

The former Nakuru Town MP said he will focus on unemployment and empowering small businessmen through creating more opportunities.

But even before the official campaign period is declared, Mbugua is already feeling the heat from the three aspirants seeking to eject him from office. Mr Mbugua rode to power on the promise to transform the county into an economic hub.

However, his administration has been on the spot over illegal recruitment of staff, harassment of small-scale traders and alleged corruption in allocation of contracts and mismanagement of funds.

The governor exudes confidence that he will be re-elected, saying he has delivered most of his pre-election pledges.

“I believe I have delivered most of the pledges I made to the electorate and I am confident I will get a chance to complete my two terms in office,” he told The Standard on Sunday in a recent interview.