Stop sidelining Ukambani, Ruto ally Victor Munyaka tells president
President William Ruto delivers a speech during the handover of recovered assets to the state by EACC at State house on September 11, 2024.
Former Machakos Town MP Victor Munyaka, a staunch supporter of President William Ruto, has accused the leader of sidelining Ukambani and abandoning his allies in the region.
Mr Munyaka's comments came barely two weeks after former United Democratic Alliance (UDA) leader Johnson Muthama accused President Ruto of abandoning Ukambani.
Speaking at the funeral of his sister Rose Mwikali, Mr Munyaka gave the impression that President Ruto risked losing the support he enjoyed in Kitui, Machakos and Makueni counties.
"You all know that I have been called the Kamotho of Ukambani in terms of loyalty to Ruto. I introduced Mwala MP Vincent Musyoka, Mr Muthama and Kitui East MP Nimrod Mbai and through our efforts the Kamba region gave President Ruto 250,000 votes. These are the votes that enabled him to win the presidency. I urge my friend President Ruto to stop sidelining the Kambas for the sake of Munyaka, Kawaya, Mbai and Muthama who worked tirelessly to ensure your victory. We have seen a trend where Kambas holding plum government positions have started losing them," he said in Muthwani area of Machakos County on Friday, September 13.
Mr Munyaka named former Kenya National Trading Corporation boss Pamela Mutua, former Kenya Cereals and Produce Board boss Joseph Kimote, former KICC board chairperson Adelina Mwau, former Kenya Medical Supplies Agency acting CEO Andrew Mulwa and former National Authority for the Campaign against Alcohol and Drug Abuse acting CEO John Muteti as among those who have recently lost their jobs.
Machakos Deputy Governor Francis Mwangangi, who attended the funeral, mocked President Ruto's allies in Ukambani region for supporting an administration that has 'failed Kenyans'. He urged Munyaka to dump the Kenya Kwanza administration.
It is not the first time that President Ruto's allies in the region have accused him of making them look ridiculous in a region dominated by supporters of the Wiper Party's Kalonzo Musyoka.
When President Ruto toured Makueni County in March, Mwala MP Vincent Musyoka, who is his point man in the region, angered the head of state after he complained that it was becoming difficult for his allies to popularise the Kenya Kwanza administration in the region when some of them had not secured government jobs.
President Ruto said he was focused on creating jobs for the millions of unemployed youth.
Although President Ruto renewed his pledges for roads, water and electricity projects on July 12 when he met eight Ukambani MPs who identify with the Kenya Kwanza administration to shore up his grip on the region after withdrawing the Finance Bill 2024 in the wake of anti-tax protests, Mr Musyoka's shadow continues to loom large in the region.
Mr Muthama leads a group of President Ruto's allies in Ukambani who have not missed an opportunity to show their willingness to work with Mr Musyoka, their former political rival.
"We all need to come together and ask ourselves why the Kamba community is being undermined. For example, if you look at what has just happened in Kenya, we have been sidelined [in the distribution of plum government jobs] yet we pay taxes like all other Kenyans," Mr Muthama said recently.
