By Martin Mutuma
The formal impeachment charges filed against Meru governor Kawira Mwangaza are just a tip of the iceberg.
In a real sense, the governor is a management disaster.
She leads the most disorderly and disorganised system ever. The county operates as per her whimsical desires. She’s a one man centre of gravity in terms of all decisions of the county.
Woe unto county employees who demonstrate a level of professional independence or are thought not to be loyal enough.
They are immediately transferred to other departments and posted to remote areas of Meru as punishment. George Orwell’s 1984 masterpiece is what the governor uses to rein terror on county staff.
One would wish that the senate looks at the turnover and the transfers of employees in sensitive areas like the accounts and revenue departments. The discovery will be a can of worms that could shock the nation.
Workers, including the county executive committee members (CECs) are ever watching behind their shoulders in fear of the Orwellian Big Brother.
Only that in Meru, they watch over the shoulders in fear of Kawira’s sisters and in-laws. Indeed, the Meru county administration is an “Uthoni ceremony” for the governor as opposed to a people’s government.
If the senate is indeed the protector of interests of the counties as so stated in the constitution, senators must stop salivating at the governors’ loot and play their vanguard role.
Senators must refuse to be seduced by money allegedly raised by the council of governors as addition to an impeached governor’s bribery kitty.
It is in the public domain that during the past two failed attempts to remove her, money changed hands while calls were made from “above” to save her.Governor Mwangaza is exceptionally fluent in maladministration.
On her family TV station and egoistic tours across Meru, she acts both the roles of the Saint of the Gutters and Cleopatra in her cavalier drama and easily interchanges the roles of Antoinette, Imelda Marcos with that of The Ceaser’s wife as the occasion demands.
The senate must unveil the real Kawira without playing to the gallery of gender.Corruption, incompetence, nepotism and arrogance cannot be excused on gender wokeism.
The senate must rescue Meru county from a paranoid, vindictive and soulless tyrant and liberate the Ameru people from a clueless opportunist who exploited gullible voters to ascend to power, and an insatiable squanderer of county resources.
As we speak, 640 square kilometres of community land belonging to the people of Tigania and Igembe has been invaded by armed herders from neighbouring counties.
What makes matters worse is that this land is a gazzeted National Reserve that the governor has failed to take control over. Some invaders are even establishing permanent settlements and sinking boreholes.
The herders have so far murdered dozens of residents forcing them to flee from their shambas with most of the residents living as refugees in their own land encamped at Matabithi AP camp.
Pleas to the national government have born no fruit as people are referred back to the county government, which is in charge of community land.
Unfortunately, the county is under a governor who is deaf, blind and mute to the plight of the hapless residents. The governor’s priorities are elsewhere, probably in ensuring that her property is protected.
In a pretentious demonstration of piety, Governor Mwangaza is alleged to have converted a huge part of the county office into a branch of her private church.
Being a regular attendee is a litmus test a member of staff must pass to attract favourable attention of the governor. It is alleged that about one and half months ago, she sent close to a hundred members of her office staff for a holiday in Dar es salaam.
In the entourage, according to our sources, was the wife of the county secretary, members of her private TV and domestic employees all paid using county funds. The governor runs the county like a private enterprise.
Kawira Mwangaza is the personification of maladministration in the management of public affairs in Kenya.
She has nothing to show in terms of development or service delivery. The general feeling in Meru is unanimous – “We made a terrible mistake”.
The people are waiting for the senate to remove the yoke of stagnation, drama and theft from their necks.Unfortunately, the senate may once again give her a clean bill of health if what we are hearing is true, courtesy of stolen county resources at her disposal.
Disturbing reports are emerging of night meetings at her garden estate residence where a scheme is being hatched to get her off the hook.
According to reliable Sources, the governor, county secretary, county chief of staff, CEC in charge of finance and CEC in charge of Public Service are holding clandestine strategy meetings with a select number of senators who are allegedly collecting the loot on behalf of other members.This explains the presence of CEC in charge of Public Service and county Chief of Staff in the meetings.
The senators are also alleged to be briefing the governor on the questions that are likely to be asked and learning the weak points where they can avoid raising queries.
When senators connive with thieving governors, where do the people of Kenya turn to? What would prevent the public from turning into riots when the institutions mandated to protect them turn into bloodthirsty greedy predictors?
During the past two ouster attempts, the Senate pardoned the governor on account of her tears and cries of alleged gender discrimination.
It is the high time Senators listened to the cry reverberating across the county that for development to take place and the glory of Meru to be restored, Kawira Must Go!
