Devolution CS Eugene Wamalwa has refuted claims that he is being used by external forces to divide the Luhya community and the Western Kenya region. This comes even as the Ford Kenya party is facing ongoing wrangles, with embattled Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula facing an ouster, and revelations that the Musalia Mudavadi led ANC is also being targeted. Speaking on West FM, CS Wamalwa said he doesn’t have the inclination to focus on politics at the moment, and that his agenda is totally different, “When the time for politics comes, we’ll talk about politics,” he said.
The CS pointed out that leaders who are keen to push the idea of supporting the unity of the Luhya community, Mudavadi and Wetangula, haven’t supported Luhya candidates for the top seat before, “They say I want to divide Luhyas, look at their history. Let our actions speak for us, not our words,” he said. He cited that in 1992, Wetangula and Mudavadi opted to support former President Daniel Arap Moi instead of the late Masinde Muliro, and in 1998 the two opted to support Moi instead of the late Micheal Kijana Wamalwa. Wamalwa said in 2013, the Luhya contestants who were eyeing the Presidential seat including Wetangula and Jirongo all opted to support other candidates, but he chose to support Musalia Mudavadi, “I supported Mudavadi, even offered financial support.”
He also faulted critics of his position as the Western Kenya representative when it comes to fronting the region’s development agenda, along with Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya, saying that he may not be the oldest of the Western region’s leaders, but he is the region’s best bet when it comes to easy access to President Uhuru Kenyatta, “Let people judge us according to how we’ll deliver, not according to our age or levels at the community.” He said Kenya is led by only one President, same to the government, and if a region has developemnt interests, they can only be pushed to one national leader, “President Magufuli can’t come across the border, through Isebania in order to sort out Kenya’s problems.”
He further urged leaders from the region to put aside their personal ambitions for the sake of the community, adding that he won’t stop reaching out to Mudavadi and Wetangula. On the political front, he said forming a winning team in politics can take a year or less, using the example of NARC, and that now it’s too early to engage in politics.
