Aden Duale endorses brother-in-law for Garissa Township MP seat
Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale has reportedly endorsed Mohamed Barrow Dekow for the Garissa Township parliamentary seat ahead of the by-election slated for January 5, 2023.
The Garissa MP seat fell vacant following Duale's nomination and subsequent appointment to Cabinet in October.
The race to succeed Duale has attracted five aspirants with Dekow, who is seeking to contest for the seat on a United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party ticket, being touted as the front-runner in the contest.
Duale is Dekow's brother-in-law.
The former legislator announced his support for Dekow over the weekend after a series of meetings with elders drawn from his Abduwak clan, complicating plans for other aspirants from the same clan who were seeking support. The aspirants include former Fafi MP Abdikarim Osman, Mulki Warsane who lost in the Woman Rep contest and Mohamed Gabow.
During the meeting held at a Garissa hotel, the CS is said to have urged the elders and professionals to support one of their own in the forthcoming mini-poll.
Osman, however, downplayed the endorsement, saying it has little influence on the electorate.
“The endorsement means nothing to me and that is the dynasty theory that we have been dealing with politically. It will end by the people of Garissa electing me as their area Member of Parliament,” Osman said.
Political pundits in Garissa, however, view Duale's endorsement as a boost for Dekow, whose main rival in the race is Nasir Dolal Mohamed alias Jofle.
Jofle enjoys support from his Awliyahan clan.
The aspirant, who is seeking to contest for the seat on a United Democratic Movement (UDM) party, has contested against Duale since 2013, finishing second.
Duale retained his seat in the August polls after securing a total of 9,905 against Jofle's 5509 votes.
Clan politics and negotiated democracy are popular in Northern Kenya. It remains to be seen which clan will clinch the seat in the mini-poll.
