Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o has accused Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi of recklessly besmirching Kisumu as one of the riskiest counties to invest in, following the recent anti-government demonstrations.
Over the weekend, Mr Mudavadi pointed out that the protests being called by Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition leader Raila Odinga were undermining investment in Kisumu.
While assuring investors of safety and security in Kisumu, Prof Nyong’o questioned why Mr Mudavadi, who has property and businesses in the county, has never raised a complaint with him over the security of his investments.
“I have not, as the governor of this great county, received any complaint from him regarding the insecurity of his investments and properties in Kisumu,” said Prof Nyong’o.
He added: “But eager to please his boss by mouthing the typical UDA/Kenya Kwanza propaganda replete with ethnicity, he has recklessly tried to besmirch the good name that Kisumu enjoys nationally to achieve a narrow and selfish political ambition.”
Earlier in the morning, the governor held a closed-door meeting for more than three hours with the business community at the Kisumu Museum to assure them of the safety and security of their investments.
For two weeks, the anti-government protests had taken a toll on businesses in the city, with hooligans vandalising supermarkets and hotels.
On March 29, the governor suspended the demonstrations within Kisumu city but later bowed to pressure and retracted his earlier statement. He allowed residents to freely participate in the anti-government protests.
Prof Nyong’o, however, admitted that during the demonstrations, goons took advantage of the moment to cause havoc within the city centre.
“Let Mr Mudavadi help stop this kind of sabotage by elements in the Kenya Kwanza brigade. Since Musalia cannot even fight for his own community, one wonders why he is poking his nose across the border to spread misinformation about Kisumu,” he said.
"I know in the last demonstrations strange characters were passed into this city. We have information that the external sabotage is to capitalise on the peaceful demonstrations," he said.
Prof Nyong'o, just like other governors from the regions where the demonstrations are held, have been in a dilemma — battling with party loyalty and supporting the Azimio leader’s cause on one hand, and dealing with the negative effects that came with the protests on the other hand.
The protests also placed the governors in a difficult position, having to grapple with a dented image nationally and globally, a drop in own-source revenue collection and investor confidence, and a lack of goodwill from the national government on a number of development projects.
But despite the concerns, Kisumu has still managed to attract investments.
Recently, the County Government of Kisumu signed an MOU with United Green, a United Kingdom-based firm, as a first step towards a long-term collaboration in enhancing agricultural production in the county and the region.
The deal signed in London envisages direct investments of up to Sh31 billion in various crop value chains in the medium- to long-term by the private investment company and other partners in the project.
