The failure that is Kamukunji leadership and its MP

I'm privileged to be a voter of the great constituency that is Kamukunji.

So, if I'm worthy of talking about anything politics, definitely Kamukunji will top the list. 

Africa's celebrated novelist Chinua Achebe said that whenever you see a toad jumping in broad daylight, then know that something is after its life. By now you know why the great people of Kamukunji - forget about the few busybodies who have nothing else to do other than praising mediocrity 24/7 - are all over the net making some noise about the poor and failed leadership of the area MP, Yussuf Hassan.

The focus of this blog post is on leadership, corruption and nepotism in Kamukunji constituency. A constituency once represented by the legendary nationalist leader the late Tom Mboya. 

First, how does leadership failure, both in terms of its ethics and its incompetence affects Kamukunji? To begin with, Yussuf's failure to address the concerns of his constituents and his inability to make use of his legislative powers have made Eastleigh, and Kamukunji in general, the ATM of the corrupt Kenya police. That's an open secret. The area MP has never addressed this problem ever since he became an MP, a decade plus ago. Even during the so called "Kasarani concentration camp", Yussuf was missing in action, to say the least. We were there. Addressing the people's concern. If you know, you know...

Misuse of the Constituency Development Fund (CDF)

The misuse of Kamukunji CDF continues unabated. In WhatsApp forums Kamukunji residents have for long accused their MP and the CDF Fund Manager of perpetually and unlawfully redirecting funds. Most of the projects undertaken in the constituency have their costs ballooned beyond the normal acceptable price. And those who closely follow the politics of Kamukunji know very well that the fund manager is the one who collects the kickbacks for the MP - a man who struggles to present a holier-than-thou image. Bob Maley once sang that that you can fool some people some times but you can't fool all the people all the time. There are myriad controversial deals transacted through the Kamukunji CDF kitty. 

Owing to instances of misappropriation and diversion of funds, corruption and outright misuse of CDF funds, millions have gone down the drain and several projects completely stalled over the last few years. The situation is so dire that we maybe forced to petition the relevant authorities to look into the books of Kamukunji CDF properly. We are even prepared to hire external auditors to undertake a proper audit of these funds. 

Most of the constituency roads are in pathetic shape. Some of them were launched during the 2017 elections to hoodwink the public. And that was it! Some of these so called roads have turned into dams, full of sewers and other waste that even our school going children are at risk of drowning while on their way to and from school. If the MP has decided to be silent about this, we have no option but to pursue him to the end. 

Constituency Office. 

The office of the Kamukunji constituency is run by the nephew of the area MP. If this is not the height of nepotism, then we don't know what is. Such postings are deemed to be illegal, unconstitutional and immoral. But what morality does the MP have if he can let his nephew run a cosmopolitan constituency like Kamukunji? The people of Kamukunji are tired of this micromanagement. 

Constituency Tenders

All constituency tenders including the construction of the Kamukunji Technical Training college is being done by the MP’s wheeler-dealers. What remains is usually sold to the highest bidder. This is corruption in its best form and if indeed we're fighting corruption as a nation, then Kamukunji is the right place to begin that fight. We are able and willing to pursue this matter, no matter what. 

Were it not for the county government of Nairobi that is beautifying the City, Kamukunji will look a ghost town. And Yussuf brags about the county projects as his. Shameful. 

 A luta continua...

Why Garissa County Officials should tone down the rhetoric 

Chinua Achebe once said that an old woman is always uneasy when dry bones are mentioned. Why are Garissa county officials jittery about Duale's remarks during the Pastoralist Education and Career Fair which happened last weekend in Garissa county? 

Our attention has been drawn to some county officials running helter-skelter trying to respond to Duale's remarks during the education expo - the first of its kind in Northern Kenya. 

First of all, Duale's remarks were nothing but the truth; and the TRUTH IS HARD! It's also true that some of the senior county officials in the Pastoralist counties have FAKE academic papers while the majority of the young people who are properly schooled are jobless. 

Just watched a clip of Garissa Govenor doing rounds, surrounded by his clueless bootlickers, claiming that he has the power to employ anyone. It was an astonishing thing to watch. Well, it's important that we remind the governor that the County Public Service Boards have a code of conduct and ethics and these codes must be followed to the letter. The law on public employment and appointments is very clear. We also want to remind the county officials that there's nothing to shout about here. What was their press conference for? You either have a genuine degree or you don't. It's as simple as that! And that's all Duale said. No wonder a wise man once said that the guilty are always afraid. Even though no one mentioned them, they started raising their hands up! 

Devolution was meant to correct years of marginalization and not to perpetuate a new form of marginalization. When Governors employ whoever they want, meritocracy is shown the door and mediocrity sets in which is exactly what we're currently witnessing in the counties of Mandera, Wajir and Garissa etc etc. 

The crude and corrosive attacks on the Leader of Majority by the clueless county officials is unfortunate and highly uncalled for. The young people of the Pastoralist community stand by and support Duale's statement because it was uplifting and necessary. Someone must talk sense into these Governors!