Inside Politics

Uhuru postpones meeting with Mt Kenya politicians amid opposition from some leaders

Thursday, March 17th, 2022 12:51 | By
President Uhuru Kenyatta PHOTO/Courtesy

President Uhuru Kenyatta on Wednesday evening invited elected leaders from Mt Kenya to a meeting at State House on Friday, March 18, a move that attracted opposition from some leaders from the region.

"Good evening Mheshimiwa, I wish to invite you for a meeting of all MPs, Senators and Governors from the Mt Kenya region at State House Nairobi on Friday, 18th March 2022 from 10 am. Kindly confirm your attendance now," the president said in a text message to the leaders.

Hours after sending the invite, the president, in a similar format, withdrew the call informing the leaders that the meeting had been postponed to a later date.

In a statement, President Kenyatta said that he has decided to put off the meeting after conducting a wide consultation. He said that he will communicate the new dates for the meeting.

"After wide consultations, I have deferred the meeting that was scheduled for tomorrow, Friday 18th March 2022, at Statehouse Nairobi, with MPs, Senators and Governors, from the Mt Kenya region to a later date, which will be communicated to you, in due course," the Head of State said.

By the time he was rescheduling the meeting, his invite had already received mixed reactions from some Mt Kenya leaders with some agreeing to honour it while others vowing to skip it.

Reacting to the resident's invite, Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria told his supporters that he would not attend the meeting terming it contemptuous.

Kuria raised an issue with the timing of the invite noting that it was out of order for the president to invite them for a meeting at a time when he has already declared his intentions to support ODM leader Raila Odinga's presidential bid.

"Mt Kenya leaders have been waiting for a proper sit down for 4 years. To call them 143 days before the election and when you have already declared yourself the campaign manager for Kitendawili is contemptuous. With the utmost respect and deep regret, just let us be," Kuria said.

Kiambu Senator Kimani Wamatangi, one of the political bigwigs from Mt Kenya region who recently decamped to Ruto's side, had however confirmed that he would honour the president's invite.

"I received a text this morning that invites me to the State House. The text is worded noting that it invites elected leaders from the Mt Kenya region from Senators to Members of Parliament," Wamatangi said.

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