Church function turned into a campaign rally
BUNGOMA COUNTY. A funds drive ceremony aimed at raising money for construction of a Catholic church that is slated to be elevated into a Parish was turned into a campaign rally for Bungoma governor Ken Lusaka who is seeking for his second term at the helm of the county’s administration.
Virtually all the speakers at the ceremony held at St.Mary’s Sosio Girls high school spoke good of Lusaka and urged the voters to re-elect him back in next year’s polls.
The leaders who were led by Kamukuywa Member of county assembly Moses Opicho and former Kenya National Union of Teachers – KNUT Bungoma North branch executive secretary Seme Sunguti and Kibabii University lecturer Professor Wanjala Kere said that the governor should be supported and be voted for another term bearing on his development record.
Opicho said that the residents of Bungoma especially Kamukuywa have seen for themselves what the governor has done for them and have no reason not re-electing him but was quick to note that they will vet the leaders at the ballot basing on their work that they have done for the five years they have been in office.
“Just like other leaders I would like to declare my support for governor Lusaka in 2017 because we have all seen what he has done for this county although everybody else who seeks for election has a constitutional right to do so but you the electorate have the mandate of vetting the candidates according to what they have done for you,” said Opicho.
On his side Sunguti cautioned the people of Kamukuywa and the entire Kimilili constituency not to squander their chance of having the governor from within because they are likely to suffer if that seat is left to go to another region of Bungoma County.
“We the people of Maeni we already decided that governor Lusaka should go back and therefore you people of Kamukuywa should not waste this chance of having a governor from our midst,” said Sunguti.
Professor Kere despite saying that the leaders who are in office should be given chance to serve their people, he did said that other interested aspirants should not be denied their constitutional right of seeking elective positions.
A civil society activist from Kimilili Pius Ndumba was also quick to protect the governor who was not at the meeting despite having been invited to grace the occasion, said that the people of Kamukuywa and Kimilili should defend the seat of governor jealously lest they suffer for many decades without getting that seat back if they lose it now.
He pointed out that the elders had apportioned the seat of governor to the people of Kimilili prior to the 2013 general elections in a power sharing deal held at Sudi stadium in Nzoia hence they should not lose the opportunity.
Ndumba said that the people of Kamukuywa and Kimilili should be proud of having a governor from their midst and therefore be ready to protect it at all costs.
“You people of Kamukuywa and Kimilili I would like to urge you not to lose this seat of governor as it was given to us by the elders in Sudi Stadium who said that the seat should be given to people of Kimilili. If you lose it now I tell you it will be very difficult to reclaim it and it can take us 60 or 90 years before we get it again,” said Ndumba.
The leaders called on Bishop Wambua of the Bungoma Diocese of Catholic church to pray for the leaders in the county to stop wrangling but keep peace ahead of the general elections and work for the residents in their different capacities.
At the moment governor Lusaka’s opponents include businessman Wycliffe Wangamati a.k.a WW who is going round to seek for the seat on a Ford Kenya ticket and former Kanduyi MP who also vied for the same seat in 2013 Alfred Khang’ati.
The ceremony that was preceded by a mass led by Bungoma diocese Bishop Norman Wambua King’oo saw over Ksh. 2 million raised for the construction of the church.
In the donations governor Lusaka send his donation of Ksh. 500,000, with area MCA Opicho donating Ksh. 100,000 with the Bishop giving his donation through a Cheque of Ksh. 50,000.
Other donations came from area Member of Parliament Suleiman Murunga who send Ksh. 20,000 with other funds coming from churches, parishes and individuals including Rose Natecho an upcoming youthful politician who has declared her interest in the seat of Kimilili constituency currently held by Murunga.
