TNA leaders accuse Governor Evans Kidero of laxity

A section of The National Alliance (TNA) politicians have critisised Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero for failing to deliver quality services.

Led by TNA Secretary General Onyango Oloo, the group blasted Dr Kidero for “using President Uhuru Kenyatta as a camouflage to avoid questions on his spending and development record.”

He said in a statement to newsrooms: “We are not happy. I have held several meetings with TNA MPs as well as Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) on the need to play an oversight role for the county since we are the opposition. It has to be very clear that TNA is not in coalition with ODM.”

He further accused Kidero of spending most of his time in fundraisers in Nyanza instead of doing what residents of Nairobi elected him to do. But this week, Gem politician Elisha Odhiambo said Mr Oloo has no moral authority to criticise Kidero.

“The party has been reluctant to reward Oloo with a lucrative position other than some board in Kisumu because of the way he handled the bungled party nominations. He is being investigated for mismanagement of funds at the party secretariat he headed and I hope the same will not happen to the Lake Basin Authority, which is funded by the exchequer,” Odhiambo said.

But in a swift rejoinder, Oloo said TNA MPs and MCAs have an oversight role over the governor including offering positive criticism for the good of the county.

“We know that Kidero assented to a Bill that allowed the county to borrow a loan of Sh4 billion from Family Bank. We want to know why they borrowed such an amount under recurrent expenditure and more specifically why they single sourced this facility. First, it is illegal to borrow for recurrent expenditure but above all, this is a huge amount that should have been subjected to competitive bidding so that the bank with the lowest interest rates should win. Very soon, we shall be in court over this issue, “Oloo said.

“The county government of Nairobi has received Sh22 billion from the national government yet there is nothing to show for it,” he added.

Oloo dismissed claims that he bungled party nominations in the lead up to the March 4, 2013 election adding that he is not under any investigations for financial impropriety.

“This is an attempt to divert attention from the debate on service delivery. Nobody is investigating me,” Oloo said.
But a group of politicians from Nyanza and Nairobi have dismissed Oloo’s accusations against Kidero saying everything the governor has done is within the law.