Aspirants seeking the Garissa Township parliamentary seat in the January 5 By-election have been urged to carry out clean campaigns devoid of incitement and name calling.
Speaking at the IEBC constituency office after being cleared to contest by constituency Returning Officer Aden Yunis, UDA candidate Mohamed Barrow Dekow also urged residents to keep away from aspirants who were hell bent on dividing them along clan lines.
“Now that the electoral body has cleared us to contest, I want to appeal to my fellow politicians and candidates who have been cleared that let us all strive to carry out issue based campaigns and articulate to wananchi what we will do for them if elected,” Dekow said.
“I want to assure the people of Garissa, my supporters and my party that I will lead by example on this. Gone are the days when politicians used to play the tribal card or use clan lines to whip the emotions of the electorate in order to seek sympathy votes. Our people are very mature and they know the kind of person they want as their leader and whom they will vote for,” he added.
Dekow, who contested the Garissa gubernatorial seat in the August polls and came third, expressed optimism of winning the constituency seat while promising to pick from where his predecessor Aden Duale, now the Defense Cabinet Secretary, left.
“I know I am coming in to fill very big shoes of my brother Duale who served this constituency for 15 good years. It is a huge task but I know what I am up against. With the support of the constituents I will not only win the seat but we will take huge development strides together,” he said.
The UDA candidate, who was flanked by his supporters, promised that if elected he will ensure that all planned projects that the Defense CS had made during the campaign period are fulfilled.
Last week, Dekow’s bid to capture the seat got a major boost following his endorsement by Duale. Abdullahi Gabane who in the August elections contested for the township seat and bagged 5,552 votes, also stepped down in favour of the UDA candidate.
The by-election which has attracted eight candidates will be held on January 5, 2023.
