Battle of titans in Kiambu governor seat as IEBC clears Kabogo, Waititu
The stage has been set for a bruising battle for the Kiambu gubernatorial seat after governor William Kabogo and his main challenger Ferdinand Waititu were cleared by the IEBC.
Kabogo will be defending his seat as an independent candidate after losing the Jubilee Party ticket to Waititu who is the MP for Kabete.
The incumbent presented his nomination papers on Friday to county returning officer Hellen Sidi at the Kiambu Institute of Science and Technology. He was escorted by hundreds of jubilant supporters who thronged the compound where the nomination was taking place.
Waititu had been cleared the previous day along with another independent candidate James Ng’ang’a. A fourth contender Gakuru Kanyanja of Maendeleo Chap Chap was also cleared on Friday.
Earlier, Kabogo’s clearance exercise was briefly interrupted after he took issue with the presence in the room of an IEBC official whom he claimed had participated in the Jubilee nominations in the county.
“I take great exception to the presence of this man who has confirmed to me that he took part in the party primaries. For the election to be free and fair IEBC must withdraw officials who had been seconded to the party nomination process,” Kabogo said.
He threatened to go to court if the electoral body does not address his concerns.
Elsewhere, Thika MP Alice Ng’ang’a was cleared to defend her seat on a Jubilee ticket and will face off with her main opponent Patrick Wainaina who was handed a clearance certificate to run as an independent candidate.
Ng’ang’a narrowly defeated Wainaina in the hotly contested Jubilee primaries, prompting the latter to contest as an independent candidate.
Also in the race is Muritu Gatheca of Maendeleo Chap Chap party.
