[Governor Nathif Jama and MCAs at a past function. Ijara MCA Mohamed Abdullahi has said that division based in ethnic lines has cost the county] ( Photo/the-star.co.ke)A Member of the County Assembly (MCA) has said that ethnic division is main reason behind Garissa County government’s poor performance as we head to the August general elections.
Ijara MCA Mohamed Abdullahi said that division based in ethnic lines has cost the county greatly in the last four years following the last general elections.
He also took a swipe at Speaker Mohamed Abbey, accusing him of taking sides when he was supposed to remain neutral during meetings of the house.
“We may be quick to blame the House for doing little in terms of oversight and legislation, but I want to blame this on the ethnic division that was deep rooted. It impacted negatively on our work,” Abdullahi said.
The lawmaker added: “The speaker was partisan. He took advantage of the ethnic divide to run the House. He also used it to protect his selfish interests,”
In his defence, Speaker Abbey said that he has never favoured any side during his term in office, adding that the house has done fairly well in the past four years.
“I have never been partisan. What members want to do was sometimes radical or unlawful. What was I supposed to do as the speaker? Of course I had to go against that. My guidance and resistance to things that are unlawful were always deemed as being partisan,” he said.