Seen by many as the successor of the former powerful Ganze MP Noah Katana Ngala, an influential figure during the President Daniel Moi administration, Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi's political star has been on the rise.
A well-educated son of the Giriama, Kingi has quickly grown into a formidable political figure in the region, something that has put him on the collision path with his critics.After making a plunge into politics in 2007 at 33, Kingi easily won the Magarini parliamentary seat on an ODM ticket, elbowing out a powerful government-aligned incumbent Harrison Kombe. And since then, Kingi has never looked back.In the 2013 gubernatorial contest, he replicated his emphatic 2007 win as he romped into a landslide victory, garnering nearly half of the total votes cast with his nearest challenger, former Ganze MP, Francis Baya coming a distant second.In his first term in parliament, he was appointed to the Cabinet in the Grand Coalition Government, first as a Minster of East African Community, and later as Minister for Fisheries Development.An astute University of Nairobi-trained lawyer and an old boy of the prestigious Alliance High School, Kingi briefly worked with the Constitutional Review Commission as Coordinator for Malindi District before he was elected to parliament.Regarded as one of Raila Odinga's 'disciples' at the Coast region, Kingi doesn't shy away from defending his party boss. After all he has built his political career. In the past few months, the ODM man has been on the receiving end from both the government and his local critics who accuse him of mismanaging county resources.Unshaken, the 43-year-old politician has dared Kilifi North MP Gideon Mung'aro to vie against him in the August poll.Irrespective of the 2017 polls outcome, Kingi is the man to watch as Coast politics take shape with every coming election.