Politicians who unsuccessfully vied for various seats in Machakos County as independent candidates in 2017 elections have urged President Uhuru Kenyatta to consider them for state appointments.
The lot said most of them are suffering since they lost all their savings and investments in the campaigns which each solemnly funded as an independent candidate.
Led by the Machakos County Independent Candidates Caucus co-chairperson Rita Ndunge, the politicians said they as independent candidates tremendously contributed to the votes President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto garnered in Machakos County during the last polls.
“There is need to consider those who unsuccessfully rallied for various political seats in Machakos County in the last general elections especially women, we seriously campaigned for President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto in the Wiper dominated county,” said Ndunge.
Ndunge rallied for the Machakos Woman Representative seat on an independent ticket but lost to the incumbent Joyce Kamene who won the seat on a Wiper ticket.
They spoke to this writer in Machakos town on Wednesday.
Ndunge said though some of the independent candidates won the seat, majority lost in the 2017 elections.
She said the independent candidates who lost are 'orphaned' since they have no party leader to fight for them so that they secure jobs in the Jubilee government.
Ndunge who is commonly known as “Charity Mashinani” across the Machakos County due to her Charity Mashinani Initiative that implements projects geared towards the socio-economic empowerment of women, widows, youth, and widowers, said she was branded 'Jubilee mole' during the campaigns period.
The initiative has projects on food security and climate change.
“I campaigned for Jubilee in Machakos, a county that was dominated by the Wiper party. I was branded a Jubilee mole by my political nemesis,” Ndunge said.
She said though she lost in the elections, she got over 49,000 votes which are not easy for an independent candidate to garner in such a Wiper dominated county.
Ndunge said some of the candidates have become bankrupt while others are struggling to service their loans which they borrowed from various banks to fund their campaigns.
“Some of us used loans to fund our campaigns. There are independent candidates who are unable to provide their families with basic needs,” added she.
She said they support the handshake between President Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Ndunge said it is in the spirit of that handshake that as independent candidates, they urge the president to appoint some of them to state positions for them to earn livelihoods and support their suffering families.
“We support the handshake and the Jubilee government’s development projects across the country and in Machakos including the President’s Big 4 Agenda. So far, there are few State appointments in Machakos County. There is a need for more appointments in the county in line with the two-thirds gender rule,” said Ndunge.
She said the caucus has over 50 members.
Ndunge said they are ready for a handshake with President Kenyatta just like ODM leader Raila Odinga and his Wiper counterpart Kalonzo Musyoka did.
She said they support President Uhuru Kenyatta his deputy William Ruto and the Jubilee government in its entirety.
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