Democratic Action Party (DAP-K) leader Eugene Wamalwa has revealed that he had an agreement with Trans Nzoia Governor George Natembeya in 2022 before supporting him for the county’s top job.

While speaking during an interview on a local radio station on Thursday, October 23, Wamalwa stated that he and Natembeya had agreed to work together to correct the mess created by former Trans Nzoia Governor Patrick Simiyu, who, according to him, had done nothing meaningful for the county during his 10 years in office.

Eugene Wamalwa said the county had lost 10 years of devolution, and when he was urging Trans Nzoia residents to support Natembeya, who had just resigned as Rift Valley Regional Commissioner, he pleaded with them to give him 10 years to fix the damage that had already been done and later compare his performance to that of his predecessor.

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“I had an agreement with George Natembeya. I am the one who brought him into the political scene. We agreed that the Ford Kenya party under Patrick Khaemba had ruled Trans Nzoia County for 20 years, but during that period, nothing much was done to bring real change to the county,” Wamalwa said

“We acknowledged that the county had lost 10 years of devolution, and as DAP-K, we pleaded with Trans Nzoia residents to give us another 10 years to show what we could do and to transform the county.”

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He went on to express his disappointment, saying he was appalled to see someone he helped ascend to power go against their agreement of serving the people of Trans Nzoia for 10 years and bringing change, only to abandon that understanding and seek to compete with him at the national level.

Natembeya changing stance

Wamalwa, however, stated that he cannot stop Natembeya since it is his democratic right to declare interest in any position he wishes to contest. He, however, cautioned him not to divide the party or cause disunity within the region.

“However, Natembeya has since changed his mind. He now wants to abandon what we agreed on and compete with me at the national level. It is still his democratic right, and I cannot stop him, but he should remember the commitment we made to the people of Trans Nzoia.”

He urged Natembeya that if he wishes to vie for the presidency, just like him, he should follow the rightful procedures provided in the party constitution instead of “plotting a coup” within the party, which he described as the most sought-after party in the region.

Wrangles

This comes amid ongoing wrangles within DAP-K, as Natembeya attempts to establish himself as the spokesperson of the region and take over the party leadership from Eugene Wamalwa, a dispute that recently forced the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) to convene a meeting to address the rising tensions between the two factions.