The Gema, Kamba, Kisii and Luhya communities in Mombasa are talking about an alliance to support candidates next year. Kamba spokesman Philip Ndolo is spearheading the talks.
He has met individual community leaders to arrange a meeting in the next few weeks. “We have the numbers but we must make them count if we are to have a say in the county,” Ndolo said on Tuesday.
The native Mijikenda community has the most number of registered voters, followed by the Kamba, the Luo and the Luhya communities. Mijikenda voters number between 109,000 and 115,000. Kambas have between 45,000 and 55,000 voters. Luhya voters are estimated at 40,000-45,000, same as Luos.
Ndolo said the plan is to task community leaders to urge members to register as voters in Mombasa and vote there. “Many of our people go upcountry to vote. We want to stop this and enjoy our numbers here,” he said.
Marginalised
Gema Coast regional coordinator Shadrack Wanyoike has bought into the idea and is marshalling his community members to support it. “We all came here as businesspeople but we have been marginalised yet we have many votes. We need to be involved in county affairs,” he said yesterday.
Kisii representative Joseph Mochorwa told the Star he is yet to hold any meaningful talks. “We are still toying with the idea,” he said on the phone yesterday.
The Kamba and Gema are in a similar arrangement with a different set of leaders, with Kamba’s Daniel Muange and Gema Mombasa chairman Crispus Waithaka spearheading the unity initiative. It is not yet clear if they will join hands with Ndolo.
