Denise Kodhe and two other candidates eying the Nairobi governor seat skipped Monday’s gubernatorial debate.
Without revealing the identities of the other candidates who were a no show at the live event, moderator Ayub Abdikadir of K24 said Kodhe confirmed his absence in writing.
“We would like to state that one candidate of the Liberal Democratic Party, Denise Kodhe declined to attend this debate in writing while two other candidates who have been cleared by the poll body did not communicate,” Abdikadir said.
He is moderating the debate together with Serfine Achieng’ Ouma of KBC.
Kodhe is a seasoned journalist who has worked for both local and international media in Kenya and in Africa for several years.
He and the other candidates had been scheduled to face off with four rival candidates who honoured the invite.
These are Independent candidate Esther Waringa, Herman Grewal of Safina Party of Kenya, Nancy Mwadime of Usawa Kwa Wote party and Kenneth Nyamwamu of United Progressive Alliance (UPA).
The debate was the first of the two-tier gubernatorial debate and it featured governor hopefuls whose popularity ratings, based on three recent opinion polls, stand below 5 per cent.
The debate at the Catholic University for Eastern Africa (CUEA) main campus in Karen, Nairobi is expected to end at 7:30 pm.
The second debate will air between 8:00 pm and end at 9:30 pm featuring candidates who have polled above 5 per cent in the same opinion polls.
