The former Speaker of the National Assembly Kenneth Marende has come out clearly to outline the reason why he would vie for the Nairobi gubernatorial seat come 2017 in the elections. While addressing residents in Emuhaya, he said seniority when it comes to politics and his good leadership places him as the best candidate to take over as Nairobi Governor.
Marende cited his experience as the speaker of the National Assembly as an advantage. “Kenyans have faith in me because they saw my leadership skills as their speaker and I delivered during my tenure,” said Marende.
“I will vie for Nairobi gubernatorial position because that is the only senior post which I can go for at the moment. The Nairobi governor post is the third powerful post after the President and Deputy president posts,” Marende said.
Marende said Kenyans have faith in his leadership. He assured his doubters that they will be surprised when he takes over as Nairobi governor, refuting claims that he can’t compete with governor Evans Kidero because of money related issues. He gave an example where he defeated once Emuhaya MP, the late Sheldon Muchilwa, who had a lot of money.
“When I declared my interest to contest against the late Sheldon Muchilwa in the 2002 elections, many laughed at me, citing that Muchilwa had a lot of money, but I managed to defeat him,” said Marende.
Marende promised to distribute resources in Nairobi County, including taking care of employment opportunities to equally benefit all tribes living in the Kenyan Capital city. He said Nairobi has the capacity to employ over 15,000 people annually. He also assured Kenyans proper management of devolution funds in Nairobi if elected.