Former Gatanga MP Peter Kenneth declares bid for Nairobi governor seat

Former Gatanga Member of Parliament Peter Kenneth has officially declared his bid for the Nairobi County governor seat at a church service in Jesus Winners Ministry Church.

Kenneth, who is accompanied by ten members of parliament, intends to run on a Jubilee ticket bringing to five the number of contestants seeking to unseat incumbent governor Dr Evans Kidero.

The te MPs who accompanied Kenneth, including Starehe’s Maina Kamanda, John Njoroge of Kasarani, Roysambu’s Ndirangu Waihenya and Nairobi Woman Representative Rachael Shebesh, are in a proposed consensus line-up that has sparked varied reactions from the party membership and those keen on city politics

However, on the other hand, another group of aspirants eyeing the same seat on a Jubilee ticket is holding a series of parallel meetings, drumming up support for their bid.

This group brings together Nairobi Senator Mike Sonko, nominated MP Johnson Sakaja, Dagoretti South lawmaker Dennis Waweru and former Starehe MP Bishop Margaret Wanjiru.

This group is opposed to what it termed as an attempt to impose Kenneth on the city electorate, and insists on a broader consensus building that will yield a more inclusive line up to face the CORD team in the August polls. This group first attended a church service at Wanjiru’s Jesus is Alive Ministries and is expected to tour Mathioya and Gatundu constituencies this afternoon.

The Sonko-Waweru-Sakaja-Wanjiru team is accused of making it untenable for Water Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa to contest for the governor’s seat in Nairobi, prompting him to retreat and focus his energies on the Trans Nzoia governor’s job.

Deputy President William Ruto last week met Nairobi County aspirants and urged them to craft an all inclusive lineup, to ensure the Jubilee party clinches the top county seats and a majority of the parliamentary and civic seats in the August General election.