The Mombasa county administration has misplaced priorities, which is hurting residents, Mombasa governor aspirant Ananiah Mwaboza has said.
He told the Star on Friday that the county administration has not given residents value for the money it has received from the National Treasury since 2013.
“What has Sh4.5 billion a year, which amounts to Sh18 billion, been doing for the last four years for the people of Mombasa?” Mwaboza asked.
“Who says it was a priority to put walk paths within Nyali, while there are areas like Mshomoroni, Mwakirunge, Jomvu, Kwa Hola, and Mtongwe which have no roads?”
However, Mombasa county director of communications Richard Chacha yesterday said Mwaboza is misinformed.
He said Mwaboza should wait for a chance to get elected and do the projects he thinks are a priority.
“We will not respond to that. He will do that [build roads] when he becomes governor,” Chacha said.
On Friday, Mwaboza asked the county to account for all the money it has received from the national government since 2013.
He questioned the wisdom of putting up a footbridge at Buxton, which he says is not as busy as Likoni.
“If it is decongesting the road network, then you would think that in four years one would come up with an alternative, including constructing a bridge at Tudor Creek or establishing a ferry service within English Point for the people using the Kongowea Market,” Mwaboza said.
But Chacha said the former Kisauni MP should check his facts first before making allegations.
The county, in partnership with the national government, plans to put up a second bridge connecting the Island to Mshomoroni at Tudor Creek.
A feasibility study by Deloitte and Touche was launched in February 2015 and was supposed to take six months. The results of the study have not been released.
The county has set aside Sh100 million for the acquisition of two bridges to operate at the Mtongwe Ferry to ease traffic in the Likoni Channel Crossing.
Mwaboza accused the county administrators of putting their egos ahead of service delivery. He cited the disagreement between the county and the national government.
The Mombasa government has been at loggerheads with the state over several issues, including land dispute, the revenue collected at the Mombasa port and the refurbishment of the meat market at Markiti.