Governor Ken Lusaka addressing residents of Namikelo on Tuesday….Photo/IP
By Timothy Wekesa
BUNGOMA, Kenya
Governor Kenneth Lusaka says he wants nothing to do with Bungoma’s noisy succession politics mostly because unlike his rivals he already has one foot out of the county and the other pointed firmly toward Nairobi.
Speaking during the launch of a new dispensary at Namikelo in Tuuti Marakaru ward, Lusaka warned that early campaigns would derail his development agenda.
“It is too early to meddle in succession politics because more dynamics are yet to show up,” he said, leaving residents to guess whether those dynamics included a Cabinet job or a freshly minted advisory role after 2027.
The governor who is serving his last term, listed roads, markets and health facilities as his legacy.
“We want to decongest our main hospitals by building the capacity of peripheral facilities,” he said — a noble vision in a county where most patients still carry their own bedsheets to hospital.
Just last week, Lusaka cautioned his staff to stay away from politics.
Literal Translation: wait until I confirm whether you’ll be chanting “Ruto Tena” in the next election cycle.
At the same event, he also opened a maternity wing at Mayanja Health Center.
Area MCA Joseph Nyongesa showered him with the usual political praise while Musikoma MCA George Makari urged the county to post more staff to the new facilities .
In Bungoma, new buildings often arrive before the doctors.
For now, Lusaka insists he is fully focused on service delivery but as Bungoma residents know too well, politicians don’t just “distance” themselves from succession; they often trade it in for a bigger prize.
For Lusaka, the prize may be waiting in Nairobi where helping President William Ruto secure re-election could open the door to his next political chapter,may be as a cabinet secretary,head of civil service or Speaker of the Senate for the second time;After all who knows Lusakas political posterity?
