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President Uhuru Kenyatta is today expected to meet Coast leaders as heightened activity pitting the country’s high profile political leaders in the region continues to build.

The president is expected to commission a number of projects in Kilifi County where he will be joined by a delegation of local leaders.

Ganze Member of Parliament  Teddy Mwambire confirmed that the President will be in Rabai where he is expected to distribute title deeds to hundreds of squatters.

He also hinted at plans by the president to meet Coast political leadership “to discuss the region’s development.”

Political agenda

While noting that “region’s development” was top in the agenda of the planned meeting, Mwambire who is also the secretary of Coast Parliamentary Group (CPG) did not rule out the agenda about the region’s political future.

“He hinted at meeting us when he is ready but he is yet to communicate. However there are such plans we are waiting for official word from the Office of the President but they are yet to confirm,” he said: “We have to plan ourselves first because some of our colleagues are in Nairobi at the moment.

We want to have far-reaching strategies on development because we have a lot to consider wholesomely on the development agenda from Land issues, the Ports, employment and more besides.”

Regarding the political agenda, Mwambire said the local leadership feels the political security of the region requires attention and is likely to take center stage should local leaders be accorded an opportunity to meet the president today or even later.

“On politics it should be known that we are keen to find a safe zone as coastal people.

Our political security is very important as coastal people. This means that we want to see that in future we are somewhere close to the cake.

We don’t want to be on the menu, but we want to see that this region gets the opportunity to eat the cake,” he said.

The legislator, the leadership is keen to negotiate that the region is counted when it comes to top positions in the next government but noted he is opposed to the idea of forming a Coast political party at this time as it might “not yield any fruits.”

“We want to speak with one voice and discuss achievable plans both long term and short term not assumptions,” he said.

Mwambire observed that the key focus at the moment will be “Coast first” and therefore the meeting will involve both the “handshake supporters” and the “Tanga Tanga.”

“We are putting Coast first then our allegiances later, there is no MP who doesn’t support well structured and achievable development,” he said.

So far there is no official communication as to whether Raila will accompany the president on the Coast tour.