PRESIDENT TO VISIT KERICHO AND BOMET TO SALVAGE 2017 VOTES

PRESIDENT TO VISIT KERICHO AND BOMET TO SALVAGE 2017 VOTES

BY JEFFERSON KIPKEMOI.

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto are due to visit Kericho and Bomet counties this April the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly Dr. Joyce Laboso has revealed.

Dr. Laboso while speaking on Easter Sunday at Umoja Childrens Home in Singorwet Ward of Bomet Central Sub County in Bomet County said the Kipsigis community in the South rift region was still in full support of the Jubilee coalition.

“It is not true that development in the region has been skewed in favour of the North Rift region as claimed by a section of the Jubilee leaders are no longer in sync with the coalition leadership.” she said.

Dr. Laboso dismissed claims by the critics of the Jubilee government who pointed an accusing finger at the president and his deputy that they had marginalized the region. KANU leaders and a number of Jubilee rebels made the claims during the recent by elections in Bomet and Kericho.

The impending visit by the president is meant to appease Jubilee supporters who in the recent few months have been bombarded by anti coalition ideologies that were triggered by the February and March mini polls in various parts of the country including Kericho, Malindi and Bomet.

During the tour of duty in the two counties, the president is expected to commission several development projects as promised during the run off to 2013 general.

Dr. Laboso said the visit by the president and his deputy was a sure indicator that the Jubilee government was ready to deliver its pre-election promises to all Kenyans.

“It is not true that the government has sidelined the South Rift region as alleged by Bomet governor Isaac Ruto and KANU chairman Gideon Moi during their campaign trails in support of the KANU candidate Mr. Paul Sang’ during the recent Kericho County Senatorial by- election.” She said.

She said the “wild” claims by a section of Kalenjin leaders about the Jubilee government was efforts meant to split the community but noted that such moves were futile.

She noted that during the visit, the president was expected to lay a foundation stone of the construction of the Sh. 500 million constituent college of Moi University in Bomet town.

The president will also commission tarmacking of various roads among them Daraja Sita-Chebole-Dikirr Road and Silibwet- Olenguruone Road which connect Nakuru to Bomet and Narok counties.

As much as the visit is touted to be an official state visit by the president to the region, political observers are in agreement that the president is desperate to consolidate votes from the South Rift region and especially Bomet and Kericho counties that were affected widely through the recent by-elections and the ever increasing rebellion by Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto who has been fighting Jubilee coalition from within having won the 2013 gubernatorial seat for Bomet through United Republican Party(URP) a Jubilee coalition partner party led by the deputy president.

Altercations between the fiery governor and the deputy president have not made access to projects by the region any better with residents having mixed feelings about him.

Recently, a social media post showed the governor opening a cattle dip in the region while Machakos governor Alfred Mutua was commissioning a vehicle assembly plant a stark difference of priorities by the two leaders based on the fact that majority of people are used to spraying the cattle at home rather than taking their cattle to dips as a way of pest control.

The Machakos event is seen as a landmark activity both as a status icon and economically in that it will lead to creation of jobs both to locals and foreigners of the county.

The month of march also witnessed another attempt by Bomet County Assembly to Impeach the governor for what Kembu MCA ward Mr. Julius Korir who sponsored the latest motion said was financial impropriety, skewed employment and incompetence has not made the governor’s position any better.

However, national government critics in the region have said the national government was no better in implementing projects under its dockets meant for the region but if the president’s visit will achieve that then jubilee could emerge a winner in the region come 2017 general elections.