The vicious battle for control of Kajiado Politics between Azimio La Umoja and the UDA party is back.
The new battle now pits Governor Joseph Ole Lenku of ODM and Katoo Ole Metito of UDA whom he beat in the Governorship race.
The Lenku- Katoo duel is coming in during the race for the Speaker’s position, where Lenku is set to throw his weight behind lawyer Koin Lompo Papaa while the Katoo team is presenting former Ewuaso Inkidong MCA Justus Kilesi Ngussur.
With 13 seats against Azimio’s 12 seats, UDA forms a small majority.
Within Azimio, Lompo has the backing of all the MCAs.
Initially, Lompo’s home MCA Joshua Olowasa had another preferred candidate and has been threatening to cast his vote for the UDA candidate.
However, elders in Ilkaputiei led by a Mzee William Ole Kasio have warned him saying it would be “political suicidal” to deny a son of their Ward the lucrative Speaker’s choice simply because he had another candidate in mind.
The elders insisted Lompo was their Kaputiei section candidate and added Lompo’s rich legal credentials against Ngussur’s “Councilor background” was what the new Assembly needed.
ODM MCAs say they will back the candidate Governor Lenku will support.
” We are waiting for the Governor’s signal. We are ready, ” said Kenyawa Poka’s MCA-elect, Bernard Moloma.
Wiper and Jubilee MCAs have agreed to back the ODM candidate.
Mr Ngussur is being supported by Mr Metito and and Mr Onesmus Ngogoyo, the Kajiado North MP-elect.
Ngussur served for three terms as Councilor and MCA for his area before dropping out of the race in 2022 for fear of an onslaught by the vocal ODM candidate now MCA-elect Joseph Torris.
However, Ngussur’s bid could be aborted following reports that several UDA MCAs who “backed” Lenku’s re-election were considering breaking from the party line and vote for the ” better qualified and more competent candidate”, a thinly-veiled reference to Mr Lompo.