• Maina leaders rarely talk about the troubles in tea, coffee and dairy sector
•Says family feuds in the region end in brutal murders due to economic frustration
Image: FILE
Nyeri Senator Ephraim Maina wants leaders from Central to unite and address problems afflicting the region.
The senator regretted on Thursday that the majority of elected leaders from the Mt Kenya region are busy politicking either under Tangatanga or Kieleweke groupings.
"We hardly hear the leaders talking about serious problems like the troubles in the tea, coffee and dairy sectors which are almost collapsing. These are the economic backbone of our people, " he said.
Speaking to the Star, Maina said cases of family feuds ending in brutal murders are on the rise due to economic frustrations.
"Every day you hear a case of a man killing his wife and children, or a wife killing her husband. Clearly, something is wrong in the society and we leaders must address it instead of going around doing politics every day," he said.
The Tangatanga group is aligned to DP William Ruto who is eyeing the presidency in 2022 while Kieleweke is allied to President Kenyatta who is serving his second and final term.
On June 14, President Kenyatta warned Mt Kenya leaders against engaging in early campaigns for the next elections and instead focus on serving the electorate.
He said the objective of improving the lives of all Kenyans cannot be achieved if there is disunity among political leaders.
“Kenyans want service from those whom they elected. Leaders should respect each other because when it comes to development it is for all of us,” the President said.
Maina cautioned that the divisions caused by elected leaders will derail development. He said divisions in Central may spill to other parts of the country especially towards elections and negatively affect members of the community living in other parts of the country.
"Our people in diaspora could find themselves in trouble just in case the elections do not go certain way," he said.
The senator also called on the Ministry of Education to revert to the community national schools that were built by residents in Nyeri. He said though elevation of the schools was noble, the national schools mostly admit students from different parts of the country limiting opportunities for those from the region.