Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has come to the rescue of embattled Kiambu Governor Kimani Wamatangi after impeachment threats.
Gachagua moved to quell the leadership crisis in the county that had seen Wamatangi face off with members of parliament and the county assembly members (MCAs).
At the centre of heightened wrangles is Wamatangi’s failure to fully constitute his government for effective service delivery, inability to work with other leaders and failed inclusion of other key people in decision-making.
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In a meeting that Gachagua convened with all elected MPs from the county save for Githunguri Constituency legislator Gathoni Wamuchomba and county Woman Representative Anne Wamuratha who is outside the country, the second in command is said to have instructed the leaders to work together for social-economic development of the county.
According to Juja MP George Koimburi who has been at the forefront of castigating Wamatangi’s inaction to deliver services as required, the first-time governor and a two-term senator has been at loggerheads with leaders, including his MCAs over failure to include them in decision-making processes.
His alleged dictatorial style of leadership is also said to have resulted in massive resignation of his key cabinet members, a move that the leaders felt hampered service delivery.
Also at the centre of the rift is Wamatangi’s failure to employ chief officers in various departments.
Speaking to journalists, Koimburi, however, said that Wamatangi, during the Wednesday meeting agreed to work with other leaders for the development of Kiambu saying that as legislators, they will give him time to mend his ways in the interest of progression.
In the event that he fails to put his house in order, Koimburi said parliamentarians will be forced to take further action against him including calling for more crisis meetings which will also bring on board the Head of State.
“I never thought that a governor who has been a senator for two terms can fail to properly constitute his government. He must know that he cannot work alone, must work with other leaders to properly deliver services in the health sector among other areas. Because he agreed to mend his ways, we will now oversight him, failure to which we will call for more meetings with MCAs, MPs, Gachagua and if possible even the president,” Koimburi said.
“Kiambu has been making headlines over poor leadership. This shame must come to an end. We have been electing people who do not care or those whose mission is away from taking the county to another level. MCAs must continue oversighting the governor and closely keep him in check to ensure services are delivered accordingly,” Koimburi added.
Kiambu County Assembly Majority Leader Godfrey Mucheke, on his part, described as true, claims that MCAs had begun to collect signatures to impeach Wamatangi.
Mucheke, however, said that the MCAs have since stopped the processes and have agreed to work with Wamatangi for the greater good of the county.
“They have since stopped the process and we are now working together and this is what the electorates are demanding from us. We are happy that Gachagua met the MPs and agreed to similarly read from the same script. It is time that we stop politics at the county and focus on service delivery,” Mucheke stated.
The majority leader at the same time said they would be meeting Gachagua for further deliberations on how to steer the county going forward.
During a thanksgiving ceremony at AIPCA, Thika last Sunday, Kiambu Senator Karungo Thang'wa requested Gachagua to intervene before the county wars got out of hand.
Karungo said a lot has been happening in Kiambu and a reconciliation meeting was needed for the good of the electorate, who are suffering.
