Ndicho drops hint at possibility of running for Kiambu top job
Kiambu County Assembly Speaker Stephen Ndicho has hinted at the possibility of contesting the Kiambu governorship.
Although he is yet to declare his interest in the battle for the county’s top seat, Ndicho’s name has featured prominently in public and social media platforms as among a growing list of personalities eyeing the seat.
Should he throw his hat in the ring, the Speaker will be contesting against the incumbent James Nyoro, Senator Kimani Wamatangi, Thika Town MP Patrick Wainaina ‘Jungle’, former Governor William Kabogo and a host of others.
As leader of the County Assembly, Ndicho is the third most powerful official in the county leadership after Nyoro and his deputy Joyce Ngugi. His possible candidature has generated debate among Kiambu residents.
Friends prevail
Reached for comment, Ndicho said he has not made any decision about his future plans yet, but disclosed that he had been approached by friends prevailing on him to go for either the governorship or the senate seats.
“I don’t want to involve myself in this because I believe it is still too early to declare whether I will vie for any seat.
In fact it has come to me as a surprise that many people have been asking whether I will be contesting for a higher seat, but that is not my priority at the moment.”
He said his main focus is to execute his mandate of overseeing affairs of the county assembly which he has served since 2017.
Ndicho became the third Speaker for Kiambu after Gathii Irungu and Nick Ndichu.
“At the moment my hands are full and my focus is to preside over the legislative arm of the county government and help Governor Nyoro achieve his goals,” the Speaker said.
Ndichu was instrumental in the ouster of former Ferdinard Waititu whose impeachment by the county assembly in 2019 was endorsed by the Senate, effectively sealing his fate. The former governor faces an unresolved graft case in court.
Constituency split
Ndicho who is a former two-term MP for the then Juja constituency which was later split to create Thika Town, Juja and Ruiru constituencies had vied for the Kiambu Senate seat in 2013, losing to Wamatangi.
In the 2017 elections, he declined to contest any seat and instead teamed up with the ‘United 4 Kiambu’ team which had Waititu as its flag bearer and Nyoro as his running mate.
The group also made up of gubernatorial hopefuls Rev David Ngari ‘Gakuyo’, the late Aquiline Njoki and John Mugwe went on to trounce Kabogo.
Ndicho is credited with presiding over the Kiambu county assembly that has enacted a series of laws and statutes affecting the agricultural, business and public administration sectors.
So far, among those eying the gubernatorial seat, Nyoro and Wainaina have been the most visible on the ground and at times even exchanging accusations over who takes credit for certain government projects.
In Thika town, Wainaina and the Governor have clashed on several occasions regarding the re-carpeting of roads which the legislator claims was being done by the national government under Kenya Rural Roads Authority while the county boss insists they are done by his administration.
On his part Governor Nyoro has been launching various projects across the county including infrastructure, health and agricultural sectors.
