Planned Ranguma bash widens split among leadership
What you need to know:
- “We have not been consulted on these celebrations; and if anything, is there anything worth celebrating?” he asked.
- The party is being held at a time when the dust from a supremacy war between the governor and his deputy, Ms Ruth Odinga, is yet to settle.
- Contacted, Mr Ranguma, who is on a trip to Israel, said the two-year wait was “inconsequential”.
A planned homecoming party for Governor Jack Ranguma has split leaders in Kisumu, with questions being asked why it is being held two years after he assumed office.
The leaders are also questioning the manner in which the event, set for this Saturday, is being organised and whether it is a government function or a personal party.
A logo on the invitations indicates that a clan group is organising the event.
Nyando MP Fred Outa, whose constituency is hosting the party, said yesterday he was not formally informed of the event.
He said the fact that the party is not being treated as a county affair is a sign of disunity in the county.
Mr Outa said the governor could have organised a better function had he involved area MCAs, MPs and senators.
NOTHING TO CELEBRATE
“We have not been consulted on these celebrations; and if anything, is there anything worth celebrating?” he asked.
“There is a possibility the invitations will be skewed in favour of his own people. I will only attend as a friend but will not stop telling the governor he has failed the county,” said Mr Outa.
The spotlight will be on the guest list, and especially if ODM leader Raila Odinga will attend.
Mr Odinga, who is in China with a select group of governors, was invited as chief guest to a similar fete that was cancelled last August.
There are also fears in the administration that rivals might disrupt the fete.
This follows the refusal by three schools to provide a venue for the party.
The organisers finally got a venue at Otieno Oyoo Secondary School, according to the invitation that says more than 1,000 people are expected to attend.
The party is being held at a time when the dust from a supremacy war between the governor and his deputy, Ms Ruth Odinga, is yet to settle.
Contacted, Mr Ranguma, who is on a trip to Israel, said the two-year wait was “inconsequential”.
He said the event was a thanksgiving ceremony, not a homecoming. “We dispatched invitations to all elected leaders in the county. If anyone has not been invited, this could be because of delayed deliveries,” he said.
He said the county had involved the community group because it is his host clan.
“We have involved the county’s political institutions; this is a Kisumu affair and not a Kano matter as being suggested,” he said.
