Siaya: Politicians call for peaceful elections
Siaya has managed to conduct a surprisingly peaceful campaign leading to the August 9 2022, general election.
With the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) stipulating August 6 as the deadline for an end to political campaigns, political parties shared the pavements of Bondo and Siaya towns without serious incidents.
Clashes were generally limited to verbal exchanges between rival partisans, who shouted their party's slogans.
ODM’s gubernatorial aspirant James Orengo lauded the peaceful campaigns exhibited in Siaya and Nationally and was optimistic that there would be no blood shedding after the polls.
“We have witnessed a peaceful campaign in Siaya and nationally and we can attribute this to the historic handshake between Azimio-la Umoja leader Raila Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta," he said.
Orengo was confident that the mood of the Country is set to usher Raila as the next president.
"Going by the mood of the country, Raila’s team is winning not only in the presidential elections but also in parliamentary and gubernatorial seats. We are going to have majority seats but obviously the seat of the presidency it’s the most important,” Orengo stated.
“I have no doubt that the 5th President of the Republic of Kenya is going to be Raila,” he added.
Orengo asked religious leaders to pray for peace for it to rein after elections to enable Raila to have to enable the environment to put his administration in place and get his agenda going on the basis of his very transformative agenda as contained in the manifesto.
The Legislator was speaking while meeting Bondo Business Community where he noted that the oppositions have sensed defeat and were now bringing about baseless complaints.
“Already we are seeing the opposition bringing about complaints that have no foundation, basis and this is not a preparation to deal with the loss but to shed crocodile tears for they knew four months ago that the tide had changed in favour of Raila.
He also appealed to Ruto to live by his own words by accepting defeat comes August 9th 2002.
“When the results are announced, he should do the most patriotic thing that every stateman should do where the elections are done in a free and fair manner,” he added.
He however warned the IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati against compromising the will of the electorates for their selfish interests.
“We are telling Chebukati that there should be no monkey games. We are going through a lot of processes, Court proceedings, demand for register manual, the electronic identification voters as a parallel system and hope that all the equipment machines, and kits for elections would work as required under the law and with best practices in the world."
In Siaya politics, Orengo was confident of winning the governor race.
On the other hand, UDM gubernatorial aspirant Nicholas Gumbo closed his campaigns at Member Primary school in Rarieda and expressed confidence in winning the governor's seat at the ballot box on Tuesday next week.
“I have crisscrossed Siaya county campaigning for my bid for the past three months and do not think the voters whom we have interacted with at the villages would abandon me in the hour of my need,” he said.
Gumbo added that “the people of Siaya county have exactly two days to turn the fortunes of this Country around.,”
As far as devolution is concerned, Siaya has been an embarrassment for its engulfed by starving families, children who are unable to go to school due to lack of bursary and residents who are still consuming dirty water despite the region being surrounded by the lake.
Gumbo who was accompanied by UDM parliamentary candidate Neto Adhola, MDG senatorial aspirant James Wamban and UDM Senatorial aspirant Aoscar Omondi said Siaya is still characterized by pathetic road networks 9 years after devolution.
“The road network does not exist in Siaya that’s why am pleading with electorates not to elect ODM’s candidate James Orengo as doing so would move the sick Siaya from ICU to the grave,” he added.
It’s the failure of oversight Siaya that has seen it doing badly. Orengo whose role was to oversight outgoing Governor Cornel Rasanga’s administration opted to remain silent and that has impacted negatively on our lives,” Gumbo noted.
