Deputy President Prof. Kithure Kindiki has vowed to lead a fresh war against illicit brews and second-generation alcohol in the Mount Kenya region.
Speaking in Chaka town in Nyeri County on Friday, the Deputy President revealed that he will convene a multi-agency meeting to strengthen the fight against illicit brews and other harmful alcoholic drinks being sold in the region, following advice from Kikuyu and other cultural elders from the region.
“Following my coronation as the Mount Kenya spokesperson, the elders have asked me to lead the war on illicit brew,” he said.
The meeting is slated for September 29, with officers from the Ministry of Interior, the Kenya Revenue Authority, the Anti-Counterfeit Authority, and the Kenya Bureau of Standards, among other state agencies, expected to attend.
According to Prof. Kindiki, the planned meeting is intended to intensify enforcement and develop a coordinated strategy for tackling the menace.
He said that the government will do everything to ensure that the alcohol being sold to Kenyans meets the set quality standards.
“There are poisonous alcoholic drinks that are being sold in this region, and they continue to cause harm to our people. As a government we will not allow that to continue,” said Prof. Kindiki.
The DP also revealed that the Agikuyu elders from Kiambu have also tasked him with the responsibility of uniting the politically divided Mount Kenya region.
Prof. Kindiki said that elders from the Njuri Ncheke, GEMA, Kiama kia Ma, Kikuyu Council of Elders, Nyangi ya Ndiriri elders from Embu, and Ngome Council of elders from Mbeere had urged him, as the region’s senior-most leader, to ensure that Mount Kenya remains united despite political differences.
He said the elders had specifically asked him to resist efforts to divide the region into Mount Kenya East and Mount Kenya West and instead promote peaceful political competition.
“The elders have instructed me that my chief responsibility as the spokesman is to unite the region. There are younger politicians who have been pushing for the mountain to be split into two blocs, and I want to say that the Mount Kenya region shall remain united despite being affiliated with different political formations,” he said.
“Throughout history we have stayed united, from the fight for independence to the days of our founding president, Jomo Kenyatta, to the days of Mwai Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta, and we shall not allow this region to be split,” he added.
While revealing that he had forgiven his political detractors for insulting and belittling him, Prof. Kindiki said that his role would be to encourage political leaders to compete on the basis of their ideas and manifestos while allowing voters to make their choices freely.
He also warned against political violence, saying the region should not allow young people to be used to cause chaos because of political differences.
“Let us compete on the basis of our ideas and allow the electorate to make their choice. We will not allow violence and destruction of property because that is not our culture as the people of Mount Kenya,” he said.
Prof. Kindiki was speaking when he launched the construction of Chaka Township feeder roads.
He said that part of his role as the region’s spokesperson will be to ensure that the vote-rich region receives its share of development.
“The elders said that I should ensure that the people of Mount Kenya, who overwhelmingly voted in this administration in 2022 general elections, receive their fair share of development projects so that the region does not lag behind as other parts of the country are being developed,” he said.
During the launch, Prof. Kindiki also highlighted some of the development projects being undertaken by the government, noting that they were geared at improving the lives of Kenyans.
On road construction the DP said that Nyeri County has been allocated Sh45 billion for the construction of 775 kilometers of roads spread across the six constituencies. The county has also benefited from last-mile electricity connections, with 32,000 homes already benefiting and another 12,000 set to be connected following additional allocation of Sh650 million.
On agriculture, the DP noted that the reduction of fertiliser prices from Sh7,000 in 2022 to the current Sh2,000 for a 50-kilogram bag, the reduction in the prices of maize seeds from Sh300 to Sh150 per kilogram, and the reduction of the price of sexed semen from Sh8,000 to Sh1,400 a dose will go a long way to improve agricultural productivity.
To tackle the high rates of unemployment in the country, Prof. Kindiki said more jobs for the youth are being created in the construction sector through affordable housing and construction of Economic Stimulus Programme markets and through the recruitment of additional teachers.
“Anyone advocating for the abolition of the housing levy is pushing for retrogression because these projects are meant to improve the quality of life of Kenyans. Development projects are meant to benefit the local mwananchi and not the government,” he said.
In order to create more job opportunities for the youth, the DP said that the government has set up 382 ICT hubs in the country and another 416 ICT hubs are under construction. He said that the hubs had created 300,000 job opportunities under Kazi Mtandaoni.
Prof. Kindiki further revealed that the government had eliminated recruitment brokers, therefore facilitating young people to get jobs outside the country.
“Until now we have been able to facilitate 540,000 Kenyans to work overseas under the Kazii Majuu programme,” he said.
By Wangari Mwangi and Samuel Maina
