Senator Karanja calls for Kihika's impeachment as DG Kones defends her

Nakuru Senator Tabitha Karanja has challenged members of the county assembly to initiate impeachment proceedings against Governor Susan Kihika as her long absence from office continues to draw mixed reactions. 

This comes amid concerns over the alleged lack of accountability and service delivery in the devolved unit's operations during Kihika's absence.

Her move comes as Deputy Governor David Kones defended his boss's absence from the office, asserting that there is no leadership vacuum.

He dismissed claims that her extended absence has negatively impacted service delivery, stating that Kihika has established clear and functional governance structures that operate efficiently even in her absence.

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Kones declared that the governor is legally entitled to take maternity leave and noted that she properly informed the public by circulating a letter announcing her handover of county management to him.

He stated, “The governor has the right to take a maternity leave. She wrote a letter, which was shared on all social media platforms, indicating that she had transferred the management of county affairs to her deputy.”

He added, “I have conducted executive meetings and represented the governor in all the forums she was supposed to attend. There is no leadership vacuum in Nakuru.”

Kones emphasized, “The governor trusts me and the county officers, so there is no vacuum. I want to make this very clear: people may expect to see me making a lot of noise or boasting in the governor's absence, but I remain the deputy governor, supporting her in every way, 24/7.”

However, Senator Karanja differed with him and a group of women parliamentarians who came to Kihika's defence, noting that her absence had created a vacuum and room for the embezzlement of funds.

According to her, tens of capital projects across the county had stalled, hospitals had run out of medical supplies, and contractors were no longer getting paid due to the current impasse.

Kones had clarified that the county was running well and that the governor's absence was not an issue.

Addressing the press in Naivasha, Karanja said that the continued absence of the Governor had created a crisis with no appointed official authorized to run the affairs of the county.

“We would like to congratulate the Governor for the double blessings, but her absence from office is causing a crisis, and she should hand over the instruments of powers to her deputy,” she said.

Flanked by local leaders, she noted that the health sector had collapsed while various projects had stalled and revenue collection had dipped sharply.

“The law states that maternity leave should be three months, but our Governor has been out of office for one year, and it's time that the MCAs acted by impeaching her,” she said.

On her part, Esther Njoki questioned the decision by the Governor to fly out of the country to give birth in a foreign land, meaning that she did not have faith in local hospitals.

She noted that in her absence, major projects had stalled, adding that in Kayole estate, locals were undergoing untold suffering due to poisonous emissions from the town’s dumpsite.

“Hospitals have run out of medical supplies, and we are suffering from the area dumpsite, and our efforts to get support from the county government have hit the wall,” she said.

Another woman leader, Naomi Njoki, hit out at the women parliamentarians for trying to gag Nakuru residents from speaking over the missing governor.

“The biggest problem we have had as a county is poor communication leading to the current impasse and this has created a vacuum and we no longer know who is in charge,” she said.

This was echoed by Njoroge Muthomi who called for an audit of the county expenditure alleging that millions had been embezzled during her absence.