Delegates at Jirongo Presidency launch complain of no pay

Jirongo

By Isaac Burudi

After launching his Presidential  bid on a Federal Party of Kenya on Sunday,September 09,Lugari Member of Parliament Cyrus Jirongo got himself in an embarrassment situation after  a big number of delegates from different counties camped at his private office in Nairobi demanding to be paid on the night after he launched his bid.

A visit by Daily News Kenya reporters at the offices located along Loita street,Nairobi we  found more than 100 delegates camping outside the offices as they waited for Jirongo who was nowhere to be seen.

A delegate from the NorthRift branch said that they had been promised Shs 5 000 as facilitation fee when they reach Nairobi to participate in the event but wondered the turn of events.He said he feared for his life as the people he brought as delegates to attend the occasion were baying for his blood as he had promised them a decent care in the Kenyan capital City.

Efforts to reach Jirongo were fruitless as his mobile had been switched off likewise to senior officials of the Federal Party of Kenya who even didn`t return our sms messages demanding an explanation on the matter.

During his Presidency launch Jirongo said that his main agenda will be to ensure equal distribution of resources in the country through the county governments adding that inequality has been the source of negative ethnicity.

He said the country should now have a leader who is ready to reduce and eventually finish the gap between the poor and the rich in Kenya.

“We have used government as access to resources, to isolate and discriminate other parts of the country. And this led to the ‘explosion’ we saw four years ago. Today we would give ourselves praises of how we have achieved economic development, but we never answer the question of ‘who have we achieved for,” Jirongo said.

“We can only move to the next stage, if we accept to treat each other fairly, that we must devolve and give every Kenyan an opportunity to grow,” he added. “And with this devolution, if Kenyans make a mistake to elect a wrong president, there is nothing 15 percent of the budget can do in the Counties.”

Jirongo said if he got the presidential seat, which has now attracted more than 10 aspirants, he will fight corruption which he said has continued to increase levels of poverty.

“The majority of Kenyans are more desperate than before. At independence it was; we must fight poverty, disease and ignorance. But today we are still not yet there. Not because our country is poor, but because a few, have chosen to starve the rest,” the aspirant said.

He said Kenya needs a leader who will also address the issue of unemployment for the youth which he said will also be one of his main agenda.

 “This time round we should work towards peaceful campaigns and not like before. I might be supporting the Prime Minister Raila Odinga in his presidential campaigns but it does not mean I cannot work hand in hand with other competitors. There should be not enemity,” said Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba who also graced the occasion, which had fairly few politicians.

Jirongo joins the list of other presidential aspirants who include PM Raila Odinga, Deputy PMs Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto, Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka.

Others are Water Minister Charity Ngilu, Assistant Minister Peter Kenneth, Gichugu MP Martha Karua, Gachoka MP Mutava Musyimi, former education minister James Ole Kiyiapi among others.