Shahbal speaks in Mombasa on Saturday when he met members of the Kamba community living in the town. [Photo: Suleiman Shahbal/ facebook.com]

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Mombasa gubernatorial aspirant Suleiman Shahbal has downplayed claims that Jubilee was a weak party in Coast region.

The prominent businessman said the ruling party has strong representation in Mombasa, Taita Taveta, Kwale, Kilifi and Tana River counties. He said the opposition National Super Alliance’s popularity in the region was fading.“Both the opposition coalition and the ruling Jubilee are national parties with representation from the Coast. None of us at the Coast leads a party but have considerable say in the affairs of the parties,” he said on Saturday.“Jubilee has strong representation with the likes of Gideon Mungaro, Salim Mvurya, Joyce Lay, Khatib Mwashetani, Mustafa Idd and I. We represent the Coast aspirations in the party. No one can therefore claim that Jubilee is an upcountry party which doesn't care about the Coast.”He said NASA was full of politicians thriving on empty talk without action and negative propaganda whose aim is to divide Kenyans along tribal and regional lines.“Our resolve is to ensure Coast has a voice, which it continues to have better than the opposition with nothing to show for the region in the last five years with all the devolution money they have received.”He said the county government’s resolve to demolish kiosks in Old Town, Kongowea and other parts of the county without giving traders an alternative location for doing business was unfair.“The county sent away 10,000 hawkers who have been earning their livelihood from the streets for the last four years. Women who used to cross the ferry every morning from Likoni with baskets of mangoes and cassavas, hoping to sell and get some money to take care of their families, buy food and pay school fees for their children were stopped,” he said.“Their source of livelihood was cut without any alternative given to them. This administration has not been considerate and supportive of the poor and small business owners.”