Governor Kingi declares interest in presidency in 2022

Kilifi County Governor Amason Kingi takes oath of office for his second and final term at the Karisa Maitha Grounds on August 21, 2017. During the ceremony, the governor declared his interest in the presidency in 2022. PHOTO |SAMUEL KAZUNGU | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The governor said he will first discuss his ambition with his Mombasa counterpart- Hassan Joho

  • He said after the swearing in of Mr Joho, the two leaders will go on a retreat where they will discuss their stand for the top seat come 2022.

  • Kingi said time had come for the coast to produce a president.

Kilifi governor Amason Kingi has joined the race for the presidency in 2022.

Speaking after being sworn in for his second and final term, Mr Kingi said he will run for the top seat in next polls.

Addressing thousands of residents at Karisa Maitha Grounds in Kilifi town, the governor said he will first discuss his ambition with his Mombasa counterpart- Hassan Joho.

Mr Joho, who attended the event, has also expressed his interest for the presidency in 2022.

According to Mr Kingi, the dream to have a president from the Coast started with independence political hero Ronald Gideon Ngala.

In his quest for leadership, the late Ngala teamed up with retired President Daniel Moi, Mzee Jomo Kenyatta and Masinde Muliro to form Kadu and though he stood a better chance of leading the nation, his dream never came to pass.

COAST CHANCE

“Although the late Ngala did not succeed in his efforts, Coast has another chance coming. I am officially declaring today that it is either me or my brother Joho who will be on the presidential ballot in 2022,” he said.

He said after the swearing in of Mr Joho, the two leaders will go on a retreat where they will discuss their stand for the top seat come 2022.

“From the retreat, we shall come out with one voice which we shall relay to the people of Kilifi and the Coast region as a whole,” he said.

Mr Kingi praised his Mombasa counterpart as a very close friend and a confidant.

Together, he said, they had gone through a lot of challenges from the national government because of their hard-line stand on several issues touching on coast residents.

ODM ZONE

Mr Joho lauded Governor Kingi for his landslide win, adding that the win was a lesson for Jubilee politicians that the region is an ODM zone and it will not shift.

The Mombasa governor echoed Mr Kingi’s sentiments saying both of them will battle to form government in 2022.

“What he has told you is true. We are so close and we all want to be in the same government in 2022. Expect a declaration from us soon,” he said.

Governor Kingi and his deputy Gideon Saburi were sworn in by Lady Justice Margaret Mwangi and Kilifi Senior Resident Magistrate Robinson Ondiek.

All the seven MPs from Kilifi County attended.

Others in attendance were Mvita MP Abdulswamad Ali, Mishi Mboko (Likoni), Badi Twalib (Jomvu) and Omar  Mwinyi (Changamwe).