President Uhuru Kenyatta will tour Ukambani again next month to launch more projects

President Uhuru Kenyatta has rescheduled his trip to parts of Lower Eastern to next month where he will commission several government projects.

State House spokesman Manoah Esipisu said the President would return to the Opposition stronghold to commission projects he skipped during his just-ended three-day tour due to some technicalities.

The projects lined up for inauguration include, the Mutomo road project linking Makueni and Kitui counties, Huduma centres and water projects.

“The President will return to Lower Eastern region next month on dates to be communicated for projects he could not commission yesterday (Saturday),” said Esipisu.

He continued: “Water being one of the major issues raised during his tour of Mwingi, the President will launch some projects in that respect during  his next visit.”

Kitui Senator David Musila and National Assembly Minority leader Francis Nyenze, early this year, led locals in protests after the road project was delayed.

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“Contractual issues for the road are in their final stages and the President felt he needed all paper work in place and the constructor on site before he can launch the works,” Esipisu said yesterday.

At the start of Kenyatta’s trip to the region, Senator Musila, Nyenze, MPs Jessica Mbalu (Kibwezi East), Bernard Kitungi (Mwingi West), Dan Maanzo (Makueni), Susan Musyoka (Kitui County MP) and Mutua Katuku (East Africa Legislative Assembly) accused organisers of locking Opposition leaders out.

They alleged they were kept in the dark, forcing Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, to keep off even after an earlier confirmation that he will join the President. Locals said they have been waiting for the construction of the road since independence.

“This road was the subject of our State House visit some times back and we are keen to see it launched and constructed. Let it not be a political project that will be abandoned after next elections,” said Musila.

He termed President Kenyatta’s visit a political after previous ones were cancelled. “These are just politics. We want to tell our people that when it comes to development, we are united with Jubilee. We want to make this very clear, we want the government to develop our region because it is our constitutional right,” he said.

TONE DOWN

Meanwhile, President Kenyatta called on the Opposition to tone down and go slow on violent demonstrations he said might deny the country donor funding as he ended his tour of the region.

Speaking at Kitui High School during interdenominational prayers led by Kitui Catholic Bishop Antony Muheria and AIC presiding Bishop Silas Yego, President Kenyatta said said it would be sad if Opposition leaders cause the country to lose billions of dollars from the donor community.

“If our country loses donor funding for development programmes because of incessant politics, it’s only the poor Kenyans who will suffer. Not Uhuru or Ruto,” he said during the event also attended by Cabinet secretaries Sicily Kariuki (Youth affairs), Dan Kazungu (Mining) and Cleopa Mailu (Health).

He said sound economic growth is pegged on responsible politics and leadership, and accused Opposition chiefs of making political competition a game of enmity.

“We don’t have to fight at all. Mimi sijachukua bibi yako...sijafanya chochote. Vita ni ya nini? (I have not snatched your wife, I haven’t done anything wrong. Why should we fight?),” said President.

The President said he could not launch the Kibwezi-Mutomo-Kitui-Mwingi road on Saturday as scheduled because the contractor was unprepared, but promised that he would be back to launch the road, which is part of the Northern corridor that stretches all the way to Isiolo County.

He said leaders should not use the delay to play politics with the project.