Kisii county gets new deputy governor after four months

Kisii County has a new deputy governor four months after the impeachment of Dr Robert Monda.

Elijah Obebo was sworn in as deputy governor at Gusii Stadium, today as per Section 31 of the County Governments Act.

In March, the Senate, impeached Dr Monda after senators voted to uphold all four charges brought against him by the Kisii county assembly. The former Nyaribari Chache MP is the first deputy governor to be ousted since the inception of devolution in Kenya in 2013.

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Monda was accused of gross violation of the Constitution, abuse of office, gross misconduct and offences under national law.

Thirty-nine senators voted yes for the first two charges, while three opposed and one abstained. Thirty-five senators voted in favour of the third charge, while seven dissented and one abstained.

Obebo will now quit as the chairperson of the Kisii County Public Service Board, a position he has held for nearly eight months.

The deputy governor promised to discharge his duties without fear. “I take my boss’s stand on zero tolerance to corruption. I solicit the support and cooperation of all. To the naysayers, this government will deliver. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can,” he said.

Governor Simba Arati pledged to ensure accountability and proper use of public resources. "We will be conscious of how to manage public resources. We don’t want to go to jail,” he said.

Arati told staff to be satisfied with their salaries and shun corruption.

“Let us avoid corruption cases. We could have saved enough to help our families within ten years,” he said.

Obebo’s swearing-in comes after a section of Kisii MCAs called on Governor Arati to implement development projects.

Masige West MCA Michael Motume, urged the executive to fulfill campaign pledges.

“We have done a lot in support of Governor Arati. All I need is a reciprocation of the support I am giving you. I don’t want to come back to tell our people that we have not been able to achieve that which we intended to. Let us implement the projects that have been budgeted for,” Motume said.

“I will take a break from using all my energies to support the governor. All we get in return while supporting the governor is intimidation, humiliation, abuse, and people mocking us,” he claimed.

Nyamasibi MCA Christopher Onsaga said several projects in his ward allocated funds in the 2023/24 budget had not been implemented.

“We have hospitals and roads that were allocated funds in the current budget but which have not been done. Let us be sincere with our people. We are getting it rough on the ground,” he said.