Kingi pushes coastal unity, says region loses out due to political division

Senate speaker Amason Kingi has revived the debate on coastal unity saying that the region was getting a raw deal in terms of national development for lacking a common political stand.

Speaking at the burial of former Malindi MP Willy Mtengo’s mother Patience Kahonzi at Mkaomoto primary school in Msabaha area, Kilifi County, Kingi argued that he was not capable of defending government projects or appointments from the region since he had no political muscles.

“Where I sit, I know what happens in government and for us to benefit, we must have a common vehicle that will give us strength and let us converge as politicians and talk it out and we should put our political differences apart,” he said.

Kingi who was accompanied by Kilifi Governor Gideon Mung’aro, Senator Stewart Madzayo, Youth Affairs Principal Secretary (PS) Fikirini Jacobs, Kenya Roads Board (KRB) chairperson Aisha Jumwa, former Cabinet Secretary Dan Kazungu and Ganze MP Kenneth Kazungu intimated that he will summon elected and non-elected leaders from Kilifi County and then the entire coastal region to chat the way forward for the region and its people.

“I want to advise my fellow leaders here that they should not do their politics in funerals because it will not help the people. Let us sit down as politicians and come with mechanisms that will uplift the masses,” he said.

Kazungu who is also the Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) party Secretary General (SG) welcomed the move by Jumwa to defect from the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) of President William Ruto to PAA whose party leader is Kingi and called on other leaders including Mung’aro and Madzayo who were elected on an Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party ticket to join PAA.

“I want to thank Jumwa for joining PAA and I want the other leaders to join the party because it is our home party so that we can have a common political stand and bargaining power nationally,” he said amid discomfort from those who attended the burial.