Kiambaa by-elections: UDA candidate John Njuguna casts his vote
The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party candidate in the Kiambaa by-election John Njuguna Wanjiku has cast his vote at the Thimbigua Primary School polling station.
Around 11:00 am, Wanjiru arrived at the polling station in the company of Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua and other leaders who support his candidature.
Speaking to the press after voting, Wanjiru urged residents to come out in large numbers and vote for their preferred candidate.
“Mine is to thank residents of Kiamba because this is their time to exercise their democratic rights. We have witnessed a few issues but so far, so good. I want to emphasize there is no chaos here in Kiambaa so they should come out and vote,” he said.
The UDA candidate further raised concerns over the use of government officers in influencing the outcome of the mini-polls.
He accused their competitors of camping in various polling stations contrary to earlier directives announced by security officers.
“We have seen the use of chiefs and MPs in various polling stations yet we were told yesterday that political leaders should keep off polling stations. We have restrained ourselves but our competitors on the other end are doing the opposite,” he stated
MP Gachagua, on his part, lauded, the IEBC for effectively running the exercise in a proper and transparent manner.
“We want to commend the IEBC because the exercise has been smooth and transparent. This an indicator that the IEBC can be trusted in next year’s General Elections,” he said.
At the same time, Gachagua lamented over alleged bribery allegations that he said were ongoing in the area.
He accused government officers of being behind the fraudulent exercise but again expressed confidence that the people of Kiambaa will make the right choice.
“We want to condemn the massive bribery by members of national government administration; especially chiefs and assistant chiefs who are armed with Ksh500 notes which they are using to bribe voters,” he claimed.
The UDA candidate is facing stiff competition from Jubilee’s Kariri Njama.
