Former Meru governor Kiraitu Murungi has finally broken his silence over county boss Kawira Mwangaza’s row with members of the county assembly, saying more leaders should be involved in the process of seeking a lasting solution to the impasse.
The governor has been at loggerheads with ward reps since she was sworn into office on August 25, which culminated in her ouster on December 14, 2022 before she saved by the Senate on December 30.
Mr Murungi says although the Senate did not impeach Ms Mwangaza, it took issue with her leadership style and pointed out some issues that should be ironed out between the ward reps and the governor.
He asked the MCAs and Ms Mwangaza to consider the interests of Meru residents and put aside their “egos”, saying neither can do without the other.
“The governor and MCAs are like siamese twins and it is time for them to sacrifice their egos, to embrace each other and rebuild Meru in a spirit of tolerance, humility and teamwork,” Mr Murungi said in a statement.
He lauded Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua’s efforts to initiate talks aimed at uniting the warring parties, and suggested that more leaders including former Head of Public Service Francis Muthaura, former Public Service CS Prof Margaret Kobia, Bishop Lawi Imathiu and Njuri Ncheke elders should be involved in the process.
Mr Murungi likens the situation in Meru to the 2007/2008 post-election violence that led to formation of the Grand Coalition Government led by the late President Mwai Kibaki, saying “the Gachagua-led process could consider a Government of Meru Unity under governor Mwangaza.”
According to the former governor, the problem in Meru is a political one that needs a “political solution” without delving into “legal games.”
“This is not time for self-promotion, self-advertisement and chest thumping. It is time for self-scrutiny and self-sacrifice…everybody accepts that Kawira won the election, she is the governor of Meru and she should stop fighting imaginary enemies and settle down to work,” he said.
So far, Mr Gachagua has held talks with the MCAs, area MPs and Ms Mwangaza and asked them to constitute a 10-member committee that will negotiate various matters of contention between the parties and report to him.
When the DP met MCAs at his Mathira home last Sunday, it was agreed that the parties name five members each including two MPs who will negotiate and come to a consensus on disputed issues.
On Thursday, Mr Gachagua held talks with Ms Mwangaza and declared that he was hopeful a solution would soon be found.
“We discussed various issues raised by all the teams in the county and the need to foster peace and conducive work environment for service delivery,” the DP said.
One of the demands presented by MCAs to Mr Gachagua was that the governor should stop engaging herself in activities the ward reps felt were undermining them at the grassroots level, including issuing bursaries without involving them.
The other issue of contention is the Ward Fund which however was not a subject of the impeachment motion tabled by Abogeta West MCA Dennis Kiogora.
During the reign of Peter Munya and Mr Murungi, each of the 45 wards was allocated Sh25 million and Sh20 million respectively. The funding came in the form of projects suggested by MCAs and financed by the governor.
However, Ms Mwangaza declined to allocate the funds, which is said to have been the genesis of the friction, with ward reps saying having campaigned on a platform of development projects, it would be hard for them to convince the electorate that they had delivered their promises.
Although in his statement Mr Murungi sounded reconciliatory, he hit out at Ms Mwangaza, describing her as a “strong willed political star” who doesn’t want to share her glory with anyone else but "wants to shine and be praised alone."
On the issue of the Ward Fund, Mr Murungi said there is no law that prohibits MCAs from actively participating in identification, follow up and monitoring of the projects, noting that the projects don’t require a statutory framework.
