Pain and joy after Okero beats Teya in Nyamira Speaker election
Immediate former speaker of Nyamira county Assembly Mofat Teya yesterday shed tears in public after losing the seat to former Manga ward MCA Enock Okero (left).
Teya, who was defending the seat for the second time, got nine votes against his only main competitor, Okero, who got 26 votes. The exercise was presided over by county assembly acting clerk Duke Onyari.
Ekerenyo Ward MCA Thaddeus Nyabaro, who is serving his third term, was elected deputy speaker after defeating his only challenger, Vincent Benencha (Kiabonyoru).
Before the election, the 20 elected and 15 MCAs were sworn in and took oath of office.
Teya accused MCAs of lying to him that they would elect him.
But workers of the county assembly broke into song and dance while terming Teya a dictator.
Governor Amos Nyaribo had also campaigned against Teya, who he accused of frustrating his leadership in his first term in office.
The MCAs, led by deputy speaker Thaddeus Nyabaro, said they had voted against Teya because of his autocratic leadership.
Meanwhile, the race for Homa Bay Speaker has intensified. The MCAs will elect the Speaker this Wednesday, while the Kisumu assembly will vote for Speaker today.
today.
“Workers had also claimed that he had bad working relationship with him in addition to embezzling their allowances which they are entitled to “Nyabaro told reporters immediately the elections were over.
Meanwhile, the race for Homa Bay county assembly speaker has intensified with six people being cleared to vie for the position.
The candidates cleared to run for the speaker’s position include former county attorney and chief of protocols John Apolo, former Central Karachuonyo MCA Julius Gaya and Director of Youth Empowerment Bridge Organization (YEBO) Africa Fredrick Gaya.
Others are former Gwassi North MCA Evans Marieba, Educationist Innocent Masara and Pascal Odhiambo.
They were approved after returning their nomination papers to the office of the county assembly clerk Faith Apuko by 9.30 am on Monday.
A total of 13 people applied for the seat by picking nomination papers but only six returned the papers on time.
Among those who failed to return their nomination papers are Zilpa Opapo, Boniface Owino, Biko Awuor, Kennedy Odhiambo, Michael Otieno, Polycarp Otieno and George Kasuku.
Apuko said they cleared only applicants who complied with the requirements indicated in the advertisement placed on daily newspapers.
She said they there were no justifiable reason why some aspirants failed to return their papers.
“Six people were approved because they met the requirements as placed in the advert. Some interested people failed to return the nomination papers,” Apuko said.
This comes even as others cry foul they were left out.
Opapo and Otieno argued that they were blocked due to time constraints.
Otieno said he was turned away with already filled nomination forms after getting into the office around 10 am.
“Some of us received information about applications late and couldn’t catch up with time. I tried in vain to meet the deadline,” said Otieno.
Homa Bay MCAs are expected to elect their speaker on Wednesday this week after swearing in on the same day.
Fifty four MCAs which include 40 elected and 14 nominated will take part in the exercise.
Apolo asked the MCAs to elect him, saying he has what it takes to steer the assembly leadership.
Apolo, who is making his third stab at the seat after he previously contested in 2013 and 2017, promised first responsibility will be to unite MCAs for service delivery.
“I have been a speaker at the East African Community Youth Assembly and head of protocol at the Lake Region Economic Bloc,” he said.
On his part, Fredrick said unity of Homa Bay MCAs will enable them to discharge their duties effectively.
“We need to transform the lives of Homa Bay residents and this can be achieved through team up,” Fredrick said.
The previous county assembly was marred by perennial wrangles pitting the MCAs, which sometimes ended in fist fights.
Meanwhile in the Kisumu county assembly the stage is set for the MCAs swearing in and election of the speaker today.
Yesterday, only 25 out of 47 MCA elect in the assembly attended the induction ceremony at the legislative House.
Twenty two others absconded the orientation and were said to have taken a retreat in Nakuru County.
Although, all of them were invited to attend, it was not known why some opted to keep off.
But the clerk of the assembly Owen Ojuok, did not postpone the exercise.
Ojuok said upon noticing they had the quorum, they decided to carry on with the orientation program as was planned.
He disclosed that on Tuesday they will proceed to hold the swearing in ceremony and there after elect the speaker and other House Committee members.
It emerged that some of the MCAs who absconded the induction ceremony, were on a retreat to plot for the election of the county assembly speaker.
Already, six candidates applied to contest for the seat.
They are Elisha Oraro, immediate former speaker, one time majority leader Samwel Ong’ou and Kisumu based lawyer Sam Onyango.
The others were yet to return their nomination papers and we’re time barred, Owen said.
Majority of MCAs allied to Oraro and some to Onyango, yesterday attended the induction.
But those allied to Ong’ou retreated to Nakuru, and said they would only be at the assembly tomorrow to be sworn in and to elect the speaker.
Owen said it was upto the MCAs to decide on who to elect, but they will carry out free and fair democratic nominations.
So far he said they were ready with all the necessary ballot materials.
He spoke as an MCA from Central Nyakach Vincent Obuya said they were busy plotting to elect Ong’ou.
He dared Oraro’s camp to a duel, saying they had the numbers and will beat them in the open and democratic contest
Obuya wants to be the chair of chairs otherwise known as the Deputy Speaker.
Onyango however was not happy with some of the MCAs behavior. He said most of them had been reportedly compromised.
“This is wrong. He who pays the piper calls the tune. It means we may have an assembly that won’t live up to its objective spirit of keeping the executive in check,” said Onyango.
