Mt Kenya MCA meeting ends in disarray as a section refuses to endorse Kindiki
A meeting of about 300 ward representatives from Mt Kenya ended in disarray on Wednesday after some of them refused to endorse Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki as the spokesman of the region.
At the start of the meeting, there were reports that Governor Anne Waiguru and Prof Kindiki would be present but they did not show up.
The Members of County Assembly (MCAs) were divided on who between Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Prof Kindiki should be their link to President William Ruto.
Major differences emerged when MCAS from Isiolo,Meru Tharaka Nthi and Embu insisted that Prof Kindiki would be speaking to the Head of State on their behalf.
It was then that some MCAs from Murang'a and Kirinyaga rose in protest, accusing their colleagues of going against the agenda of the meeting.
"We came here to discuss our welfare but we were shocked when some of our colleagues started telling us to endorse Kindiki as the spokesman of the region.This is unacceptable.What we know is that Rigathi is the seniormost politician in the region and he is better placed to be our spokesperson,"said Mr David Mathenge from Kirinyaga. Mathenge is the Baragwi Ward representative.
The pro- Kindiki MCAs had expressed confidence in the CS and described him as a competent leader with experience and capacity to advance the region's development agenda.
"As grassroot leaders who interact daily with people that we represent, faced with the challenges on our welfare, we have identified and agreed as a region to rally behind Kindiki who has accepted to be the champion of our region's development agenda and our welfare," a section of MCAs said in a statement.
At that point, the group allied to the Deputy President protested and walked out of the tension-packed meeting held at a Murang'a hotel.
At that point, Mr Mathenge demanded to know why the agenda had been changed.
"We were called here to discuss our welfare issues but shockingly, some of our colleagues started talking about Kindiki as spokesman. I have refused.Those fronting Kindiki as the spokesman should forget it, we have Gachagua whom we love so much. Kindiki should concentrate on addressing insecurity issues, especially in Kirinyaga," said Mr Mathenge.
Tension mounted in the area as the two groups exchanged bitter wards and traded accusations.
Tharaka Nthi representative Joseph Njeru said MCAs' welfare and development programmes of the region had stalled, adding that Prof Kindiki was the man to make things right.
"Our welfare programme has stalled and even if it means working with Kindiki for our good and development of this region, so be it," said Mr Njeru.
East vs West
Embu MCA Muturi Mwombo lamented that the region has been led for long by Mt Kenya West and it was time to change leadership.
"The Mt Kenya East region has come of age.We have our son Kindiki.We are saying categorically that Kindiki is our son and we trust him to lead us. Given an opportunity to lead, we can go far in terms of development," said Mr Mwombo.
Earlier, all the MCAs registered their unequivocal support for President Ruto in his pursuit for equitable development of the country and improving the livelihoods of Kenyans.
"As the President deploys mechanisms to fast track completion of stalled development projects and initiate new ones, we urge all our leaders to champion for development projects in a manner that preserves national unity," they said.
The MCAS also appreciated the proposal by local MPS on the need to front a united and coordinated approach for development of the region.
