Waititu: Don’t elect outsiders to county posts

Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu has said the region will not allow “foreigners” to win elective seats in the county.

In the last election, the county, which is predominantly inhabited by the Kikuyu community, elected a Luo and an Asian as members of county assembly.

Mr Waititu has been engaged in a political face-off with Kahawa MCA Cyrus Omondi who won the seat on a Jubilee ticket.

The governor said the residents should not only reject “foreigners” seeking leadership positions, but also deal with the flow of “outsiders” into the county.

VICTORY

The governor claimed Mr Omondi’s victory was because of the “outsiders” who he claimed were also taking over jobs meant for residents.

The “outsiders”, he said, voted for Mr Omondi during the Jubilee nominations and also voted for Nasa leader Raila Odinga in the presidential race, denying President Uhuru Kenyatta votes in last year’s General Election.

“That is exactly what happened, and that is how he got the seat. But it’s the competition between me and (William) Kabogo which led to all this. But, we will never allow it to happen again,” said Mr Waititu during a forum on county bursaries at Kiambu Institute of Science and Technology.

VIGILANTE

Mr Omondi was born and brought up in Kahawa where his father was an army officer based at Kahawa Barracks.

Mr Waititu has been accusing Mr Omondi of ferrying members of his community to the region to allegedly form vigilante groups.

But, Mr Omondi has denied the claims, saying they are meant to justify a tribal war against him.

“These are local youth drawn from even the Kikuyu community, born and brought up in Kahawa Wendani, Their activities are as a result of a deal between them and matatu operators,” he said.

It is not Mr Waititu’s first time to be on the spot for controversial remarks.