Long-term political advisor to the current Lamu Governor Issa Timamy, Salim Al Busaidy has expressed interest in vying for the hotly contested Lamu County Assembly Speaker seat.
The former MCA in the second county assembly has thrown his hat in the ring to vie for the County Assembly Speaker seat for which he is expected to mount a formidable challenge against former county speaker Abdul Kassim who is seeking a second consecutive stab at the seat.
He is currently the front-runner to clinch the County Assembly Speaker seat for which the former speaker Abdul Kassim is expected to mount a formidable challenge, who lost Lamu West Constituency seat in the just concluded elections.
Speaking to the media today, in Amu Island Al Busaidy stated that his key reason for running for the County Speaker seat is to facilitate county legislation that would uplift the lives of Lamu residents.
“The legislative record in the past two county assemblies has been wanting, especially the last one in which very few Bills were discussed and passed on the floor of the Lamu Assembly,” he said.
He further noted that his contribution as a minority member in the last assembly, gave him adequate insight as to the kind of legislation needed to ensure that there is a socioeconomic impact for Lamu residents.
“Apart from the legislation on healthcare and bursaries, the last county assembly Speaker did very little in terms of facilitating good Bills to come to the floor of the county assembly,” Al Busaidy said.
The long-term political advisor to the current governor Issa Timamy, also stated that the last two county assemblies failed in their mandate to keep the county executive in check which he said, as a former member of the Public Accounts Committee in the county assembly, needed to be strengthened in the incoming House.
“The County Assembly’s mandate to check the county executive cannot be underscored enough, and with Lamu’s expected socio-economic growth due to the Lamu Port within the next five years, there is bound to be a lot of legislation needed to facilitate land management reforms, tourism sector reforms as well as agriculture reforms,” he said.
Al Busaidy further said that good debates in the county assembly can only take place if the County speaker is vibrant and well versed in the by-laws affecting the county.
“The last county assembly was mediocre at best due to the lack of a committed County Assembly Speaker,” he said, adding that he would be committed to ensuring that the House plays its legislative and watchdog role when he his nominated.
MCAs across the country, are set to nominate their respective County Assembly Speakers next week once they are gazzetted.
