The contest between opposition leader Raila Odinga’s allies in ODM for the Kibra parliamentary seat has already started taking shape.
This is as National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi prepares to issue writs on Friday declaring the seat vacant after the death of Kibra MP Ken Okoth on July 26.
The Independent Electoral Commission (IEBC) has to prepare for the by-election within three months of the issuance of the notice by the Speaker.
National Assembly Clerk Michael Sialai said the Speaker will likely issue the writs on or before Friday.
Already various individuals among them former MPs and contestants in the previous elections and other hopefuls have already started positioning themselves to succeed Okoth.
Some of those expected to seek the Orange party’s ticket include Mr Imran Okoth (brother to the late MP), Mr Eliud Owalo, former Embakasi South MP Irshad Sumra, former Senator Elizabeth Ongoro, ODM secretary-general Edwin Sifuna and ODM youth leader Benson Musungu.
Mr Owalo, a renowned management consultant, served as the head of Mr Odinga’s 2013 presidential campaign secretariat and chief campaign manager.
Mr Imran Okoth said “I would rather not speak now” as Ms Ongoro said she would do the needful once Mr Muturi is done with the formalities.
“You come back to me when the seat is officially vacant so that I can give you my true position. For now, we are still mourning Ken Okoth, we haven’t healed,” Ms Ongoro said.
Securing the ODM ticket in the area will be akin to a guaranteed of victory in an area where Mr Odinga enjoys fanatical support having represented the area until 2013.
Anonymous says
THE CITIZENS of the SLUMS OF KIBERA AND ELSEWHERE MUST BE REPRESENTED BY A PERSON WHO IS DOMICILED (HAS A PERMANENT LEGAL ADDRESS) IN THE SLUMS AND NOT THE ODM LOOTING ELITES WITH PALACES EVERYWHERE IN KENYA!
The political parties in Kenya are for the FILTHY ELITES RICH INDIVIDUALS who have ganged up together to earn salaries and allowances paid for by taxpayers while enslaving the poor Kenyan citizens living in SLUMS and silencing their voices!!
They do not want changes in the the status quo and the miserable live conditions of slum dwellers!!! THIS IS PURE DICTATORSHIP AND EXPLOITATION and NOT REPRESENTATION!
THE ODM or other political parties’ thieves are ONLY REMOTE CONTROLLERS and MUST NOT BE ALLOWED TO DRAW TAXPAYERS SALARIES by pretending to REPRESENT THE poor slum citizens whose lives and living conditions they do not care about !
THEY ARE THERE ONLY TO
(a) LEECH THE POOR SLUM CITIZENS and PREY ON THEIR NEEDS
(b) ENSLAVE THEM WITH RENT AND LOAD THEM PREDATORY LOANS
The OUTSIDERS are NOT INTERESTED IN CHANGING OF THE LIVES OF SLUM PEOPLE!
Kenya political elites are pure con men, imposing themselves on the POOR!!