Kirinyaga Council of Elders have taken upon themselves the mandate to vet and approve all those wishing to vie for elective positions come 2022.
The chairman, council of elders Charles Githaka said the resolution aims to ensure only leaders of integrity will be elected to serve the public.
“We don’t want to go for leaders who later turn against us and start dividing the public, we want to have leaders who will speak with one voice and deliver services to Wanjiku,” Githaka said.
He said having seen the let down by some of the current elected leaders, the Council resolved they will in future be playing a vetting role on those seeking political positions in the county.
“Had vetting taken place those now ganging up with outsiders as though there was a leadership vacuum in Mt Kenya region would not be doing so,” he said.
The chairman made the remarks at a Sagana hotel on Saturday during the council of elders meeting which was attended by political leaders from Kirinyaga and Muranga counties.
Among leaders present were former Muranga Senator Kembi Gitura who dispelled claims that Mt Kenya region has been abandoned by President Uhuru Kenyatta whom it voted for overwhelmingly for two consecutive terms.
Gitura told those spreading such malicious rumors and propaganda to stop misleading the public and added that completed and ongoing development projects in the region exonerates the president from blame.
He urged leaders from the region to speak in one voice lest they expose themselves to those only seeing negativity in Uhuru’s leadership for the purpose of causing disunity.
“Yes, there could be some slight shortcomings here and there but look at the massive development the government is undertaking in this region running into billions of shillings yet some people have the audacity to claim otherwise,”he said.
Gitura told the council of elders Health Cabinet Secretary Mutahi Kagwe had asked him to represent him during the meeting.
He said it was unfortunate that some people in Uhuru’s government were the ones discrediting his development record.
He said when a marriage hits rocks it is beyond being salvaged and the only honorable thing to do is to divorce.
“There is no way a woman would enter into a marriage through mutual understanding and start disobeying and showing disrespect to the husband and expect not to be divorced,” Gitura said.
He cited the construction of Kennol – Marua multibillion dual carriage road that start soon as being one of the landmark projects the government was undertaking in the region adding the road will be done in two phases.
Gitura said the first contract was from Kennol to Sagana while the second one was from Sagana to Marua.
He also asked blind critics of the government to see for themselves the ongoing rehabilitation of the Thika- Sagana – Nanyuki railway whose completion is around the corner.
The former Senator who is also the KEMSA Board chairman further cited the ongoing construction of Kariminu and Thiba multi-million dams also within the region and wondered what development was if the examples cited never mean anything.
He said some legislators who allegedly bought leadership with cash from the voters were the ones now criticizing the government on failing to deliver their pre-election pledges.
“Most of those in various leadership positions ascended to those positions after buying voters since they did not have what it takes in leadership,” he said.
Also present were the National Irrigation Authority chairman Joshua Toro, former area Senator Daniel Karaba, former Cooperative Bank of Kenya founder chairman Bernard Kathanga and the former Ndia MP Stephen Ngari.
By Irungu Mwangi
