Mbeere North MP Geoffrey Ruku.
Embu Ward representatives on Thursday night clashed with the County leadership over the planning of President William Ruto’s tour of the region.
The president is expected in Embu today on the fourth day of his tour of the Mt Kenya region tour.
A crisis meeting between Ward Reps, Governor Cecily Mbarire and Public Service Cabinet Secretary nominee, Geoffrey Ruku was hastily convened at the Assembly precincts on Thursday at 7pm to resolve the impasse.
The furious MCAs expressed anger at being allegedly sidelined in the planning of the visit, with reports suggesting that the County Executive had instead opted to fund national government officials to mobilise locals.
Members of the press were expelled from the MCAounge and warned to stay away from the area around the meeting until the impasse was resolved.
There was a heavy presence of security personnel from the Administration Police, County Assembly Serjeant-at-Arms Department as well as the Governor’s and MP Ruku’s personal security detail.
“We are demanding answers as to why we were kept in the dark about the President’s plans for the visit. We are also shocked that funds we were promised for mobilising crowds to cheer the Head of State have mysteriously vanished,” said an MCA who spoke in confidence.
A section of MCAs who were conspicuously absent from the late-night meeting were accused of withholding an unspecified amount of money meant to placate the electorate through their elected leaders, with the disgruntled bunch threatening to organise heckling of the Head of State if the impasse was not resolved.
While claiming that they would not feature in the day’s programme and that no protocol would recognise MCAs, some of the livid Ward Reps who spoke on condition of anonymity hinted at a scheme to sidestep them during the one-day Embu tour by President Ruto.
“We are aware of this scheme, which is intended to paint us as politically inept and will not allow anyone to undermine our role as grassroots leaders,” another MCA said.
Drama ensued as some security guards tried to manhandle members of the press who were trying to record the acrimonious meeting through the window.
Open disagreement broke out in the room where the emergency meeting had been called, which dragged into the night, and attempts by Governor Mbarire to calm the political temperature proved futile.
After the meeting, the governor and Mr Ruku, keen to avoid a national embarrassment, emerged with the MCAs and pledged to put aside their differences to welcome the president.
They played down rumours of a sharp rift, saying the standoff was the creation of "enemies of development".
"We were in the assembly to do housekeeping, and we agreed to work together to make the presidential visit a success and show our unity. Those who say there is a crisis are shetani ashindwe," said Ms Mbarire.
On Wednesday, the MCAs tried unsuccessfully to disband Governor Cecily Mbarire's powerful Delivery Unit, which they described as an "unconstitutional collection of ghost workers" bent on looting public coffers. The leaders are angered by the GDU's composition, which includes most of their rivals who were defeated in the 2022 general elections.
The legislators have vowed to push for the abolition of the Governor’s Delivery Unit in the Assembly after their first attempt failed.
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