Wetang’ula, Wamalwa twists pop up in Bungoma contest
By Yusuf Masibo, June 29, 2022The Bungoma gubernatorial contest is shaping up into a two-horse race between Governor Wycliffe Wangamati and his predecessor and outgoing Senate Speaker Kenneth Lusaka.
Wangamati is fighting to retain the seat on Democratic Action Party–Kenya in Azimio-One Kenya Coalition while Lusaka is battling it out on Ford Kenya in the Kenya Kwanza Alliance.
The other two candidates are businessman Zacharia Barasa of United Democratic Party (UDP) and little known Martin Ndiwa of National Vision Party.
The four will be scrambling for the 646,603 votes in the county dominated by members of the Bukusu sub-tribe.
Other ethnicities are Tachonis, Tesos and Sabaots of Mt Elgon.
Kenya National Bureau of Statistics census of 2019 show that Bungoma has a population of more than 1.6 million.
Currently, the county is the epicentre of a vicious fight between the two leading coalitions of Azimio and Kenya Kwanza.
The contest is fast shaping up into a rematch of the perennial rivalry between Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetangula and Devolution Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa.
Wetangula is Deputy President William Ruto’s pointman in Bungoma while Eugene, who hails from the nieghbouring Trans Nzoia, is flexing muscles for Azimio presidential flag-bearer, Raila Odinga.
In 2017, Wangamati, who was in Ford Kenya under National Super Alliance (Nasa) and supported by Wetangula, defeated Lusaka, the Jubilee point man in the region who was backed by Wamalwa.
Wetangula has since fallen out with Wangamati and is now with Lusaka, who also fell out with Wamalwa who is now a lead campaigner of Wangamati.
Wetangula caims to have introduced Wangamati onto the political scene. They fell out after he accused the governor of sponsoring a coup in his party.
Wangamati floored Lusaka by 20,000 votes and now the Senate Speaker seems to be enjoying the support of Wetangula’s supporters who did not vote for him in 2017.
Bungoma has nine constituencies: Kanduyi with 118,333 voters, Tongaren (84,952), Mt Elgon (76,159), Kabuchai (67,221) Kimilili (61,592), Webuye West (58,632), Bumula (82,047), Webuye East (48,950) and Sirisia (48,717).
Strong opponent
Kanduyi is the home base of DAP-K party leader Wafula Wamunyinyi, a strong opponent of Wetangula, who has packaged himself as the Bungoma political kingpin.
In 2017, Wangamati enjoyed support in most constituencies. Currently, Lusaka enjoys significant support from Mt Elgon, Tongaren, Kimilili, Webuye East and West and Kabuchai where Wetangula hails from.
Wangamati enjoys support from Bumula, Kanduyi where he lives and Sirisia where he has relatives.
Both are banking on their development records to woo voters. Wangamati is depending on his scholarship programme, which has 10,000 bright and needy students joining secondary schools of their choice.
“The scholarship has enabled students from poor background to share the same school with those from rich back grounds” Wangamati said. “Education is an equaliser and the students I started with have completed their secondary education with most of them scoring As.”
Wangamati will also ride on the construction of the Musikoma-Kanduyi dual carriageway, renovation of Masinde Muliro Stadium and construction of a 300-bed capacity paediatric wing at the Bungoma Referral Hospital.
Wangamati is also banking on other projects he initiated such as the establishment of an eye clinic and introduction of the cancer centre at the hospital.
“We will be seeking re-election on account of what we have done as compared to what they did while in office. It is like day and night,” Wangamati said.
However, on his part Lusaka says the policy that birthed the scholarship was drafted by his government when he was the governor.
He has promised to improve it when elected so that the needy and average students also benefit.