Just a few days after Sirisia MP John Koyi Waluke emerged with claims that he is stepping down from his bid to vie for the seat of governor in Bungoma County in favor of Westlands MP Timothy Wanyonyi, the city MP has come out to refute the claims insisting that his politics and leadership will remain in the city.
Speaking to journalists in his constituency office, Wanyonyi said that as much as Waluke and the people of Bungoma county might be having goodwill for him to run in his home county, he will stick in Nairobi politics where he has served for close to 15 years.
“I am happy with what Hon Waluke said because it shows he has confidence in me and the kind of work that I have done for the people of Westlands and therefore he feels I can do better for the people of Bungoma but unfortunately my focus is in Nairobi politics and I want to remain faithful to the people of Nairobi who have been electing me all along,” said Wanyonyi.
He said that where he has reached he cannot go back to crowd the political space scrambling for seats down there when he can seek the same in the seat and by doing so it is also an advantage to the community to have more of its sons and daughters spreading the horizons and expanding the space of influence in the country.
“At this moment I can only wish the people of Bungoma well as they plan the leadership of the county and I can as well participate and contribute the well being of the county without being there as I have been doing before but on the leadership of the county, I urge that they let me remain here in Nairobi,” Wanyonyi said.
He further pointed out that he cannot also seek the seat of governor in Bungoma where his brother Moses Wetangula already holds the seat of senator adding that he doesn’t want to wrestle with his elder brother in any political duel.
The ODM Mp who is serving his second term as a member of the national assembly for Westlands and the previous five years as a nominated councilor in the defunct local authorities insisted that he will only vie for the seat of governor in Nairobi as he had indicated earlier on but on one condition.
He pointed out that he will vie for the governor seat in Nairobi only if the Building Bridges Initiative BBI constitutional amendment bill will pass through a referendum and have the city-county government regain all its powers and mandates from the current Nairobi Metropolitan Services NMS.
“My decision to vie for the seat of governor in Nairobi still remains but I will only do so if BBI will pass and Nairobi City County status retained as it is now under devolution but if it remains under NMS as it is currently then I better remain in my position as MP for Westlands and let others run the affairs of the city,” he noted.
The statement made by Waluke at his Sirisia home on Saturday had raised eyebrows among politicians and residents of Bungoma as far as the 2022 gubernatorial contest is concerned.Waluke had earlier in 2018 after being elected for the second time as an MP announced that he will be vying for the seat of governor in the county come 2022 polls, a decision he changed three days ago and threw his weight behind Wanyonyi.
Up to now the Bungoma contest for the governor’s seat remains between the incumbent Wycliffe Wangamati, his predecessor whom he beat in 2017 polls and now Senate Speaker Ken Lusaka with others who are yet to make their announcements official.
Bungoma senator who parted ways with governor Wangamati has been touted to be going for the seat since the run to the 2017 polls and is yet to declare whether he will still vie for the senate seat, Kabuchai parliamentary seat or go for the governor’s seat but sources indicate that he like other senators and second term governors are waiting for the fate of the 2020 constitutional amendment bill under BBI before they can declare what seats they will vie for in the forthcoming general elections.