Kwale governor hopeful Chirau Ali Mwakwere at a past media briefing. [Photo/ nation.co.ke]
Simeon Mkalla has blamed his defection from Wiper to ODM on Kwale governor hopeful Chirau Ali Mwakwere's allies.
Mkalla claimed that Mwakwere's team frustrated him to the point of forcing him to walk away from the former ambassador ahead of the August general election. Speaking during an interview with The Star, Mkalla claimed that Mwakere’s allies did not respect him as his running mate, something he said compelled him to think about his next political move. “I was not given respect that a deputy governor is supposed to be given by the people surrounding him. My decision to move out is not good for his political ambition,” said Mkalla.The politician said that he had stood with Mwakere when he was in and out of the country, adding that some of the former ambassador's close allies were not happy with him being part of their team.“I did the best when he was in Tanzania. I also did my best when he came back. But there are people who think my being in Mwakwere's team was not working well for them because we don’t think the same,” added Mkalla, as quoted by the daily.Mkalla left Mwakwere’s side to back Issah Chipera of ODM.