Only three out of 14 aspirants for Chewani MCA seat attended a debate organized for them by Muslim for Human Rights (MUHURI) as part of the Kenya Electoral Conflicts Mitigation and Civic Education Support (ECCES) program.
Richard Ogwonko (Wiper), Ali Dhadho (DAP-K), and Dahir Daud (ANC) were the only attendees for the debate with the rest 11 giving it a wide berth.
Chewani Ward currently represented by Sauda Maiya of FORD-Kenya has the highest number of registered voters in Tana River County; 14,333 followed by Garsen West with 10,999 according to IEBC.
MUHURI Field Officer Ogle Abdi said they sent invitations to all candidates who promised to attend but failed to show up without giving reasons or apologies.
“The main goal is to encourage the public to choose leaders based on their values and policies and not to focus on ethnic or religious issues. Today we have brought 50 community members here to listen to the policies of the Chewani ward candidates and we were able to hear their policies,” said Ogle.
He added that Chewani voters had the opportunity to listen to the policies and evaluate the candidates based on the same. “It is now up to them to choose the person who will meet their needs based on the candidate’s policies,’’ he added.
“The aim of this project is also to encourage the public to maintain peace because Tana River has been affected by conflicts in the past as well as ensure we elect a leader who will meet the needs of the people of Chewani,” he added.
The candidates and voters praised MUHURI for organizing the debate saying through it voters can gauge which candidate is best suited to address the problems and challenges bedeviling the cosmopolitan region.
Water, health, oversight, pending bills, poverty, agriculture, and education took center stage in the debate.
