Deputy President Kithure Kindiki has called out his predecessor
Rigathi Gachagua over what he termed as failure to lobby for development for his
people while he held the office.
Speaking at his Irunduni home in Tharaka Nithi during a meeting
with 3,500 grassroots leaders from Meru County on Wednesday, Kindiki said that
Gachagua cannot now claim to be the champion of his people’s interests.
“When you were in power you did not help the community, you
did not lobby for development for the region while you lobbied for other
regions, now that you are out you have become the champion for the interests of
your people,” he said.
The DP slammed the former office holder for not lobbying for any
development project for the people of Meru, insisting that the next elections
will be based on what leaders have done while in office.
He insisted that Gachagua cannot champion for development from
outside government when he did not do it when he was deputy president.
“There are some people who when they were in office cannot
mention one development project they brought here. Every one will be judged by
what they did while in office, you don’t wait to lose your seat to become an
expert in doing something, do it while in office. When we will come to ask for
votes, I will tell you what government is doing in every constituency,” Kindiki
said stated.
He cautioned Mt Kenya residents against being misled by the
opposition over what government has done and what it has not done.
The DP noted that the region has in the recent past
experienced political violence as has never been see before, despite leaders
from the region having political rivalry.
He blamed the violence on leaders who are only out to incite
the youth against the government.
“We have witnessed intense political rivalries in the past but there was no destruction of businesses and property,” he said.
“Why have we
stooped this low. We cannot allow politics of incitement.”
Kindiki highlighted some of the programmes the Government
has carried out over the last three years including the fertilizer subsidy
program and implementing measures that have resulted to better returns for
farmers of tea, coffee, milk and other agricultural value chains.
The nationwide programme to construct fresh produce markets,
affordable housing and hostels for higher education institution students which
has in turn created job opportunities, supplementing the climate worx kazi
mtaani, international labour mobility and digital jobs programmes.
He added that so far, 25 million Kenyans already enrolled
into the universal health insurance scheme- Taifa care.
