Wavinya Ndeti quits state job for governor race

Wavinya Ndeti has quit her Transport Cabinet Administrative Secretary (CAS) post to pursue her political ambition.

 In a statement on Friday, Wavinya said she will be vying for the Machakos County governor seat in the August 9 General Election.

"My dream is to serve my Machakos people to fully exploit their natural and creative resources. I am ready to take Machakos to the next level," she said.

She also said she intends to transform the county into a model of excellence in governance and economic prosperity.

Wavinya said she was aware of the challenges Machakos people face and was ready to face them head-on if elected the county chief.

"I am fully aware of the challenges on the ground, I am armed with a strong resolve to put our county back on the path to prosperity."

Her resignation comes a few days ahead of the deadline issued by Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua, requiring public servants seeking elective offices in the forthcoming general elections to have resigned by Wednesday next week.

Wavinya served in the Ministry of Transport for a period of 2 years, after being appointed by President Uhuru Kenyatta in January 2020.

Before her appointment as CAS, Wavinya served as chair of Governing Council, Kenya Water Institute for a year.

Wavinya will join the long list that includes political bigwigs such as United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Chairman and former Machakos Senator Johnstone Muthama, Machakos Deputy Governor Francis Maliti and Mavoko MP Patrick Makau, as well as County Assembly Speaker Florence Mwangangi.

Others include State House Chief of Staff Nzioka Waita, lawyer and first Speaker of Machakos County Assembly Bernard Mung’ata as well as Nairobi-based lawyer Kyatha Mbaluka.

She first contested for the Machakos Governor’s seat in 2013 and 2017 where she lost to Governor Alfred Mutua.

Ndeti also served as a Member of Parliament for Kathiani.