Kenya: Where Farmers' Welfare is the Most Dominant Campaign Issue

Source from:  The Nation (Nairobi) 15 May 2007 05/16/2007

Sirisia is well known for tobacco, cotton and coffee farming. Collapse of the cotton sub-sector, and low rates paid to both tobacco and coffee growers have largely contributed to poverty. Failure by the political leadership to address these issues will be a hot election item. A cotton ginnery was to be operational by 2004 - through revival of the Malaba/Malakisi Ginnery and Cotton Cooperative Societies - but this is not yet the case. Even the much touted Farm Credit Merchandise scheme, and the small scale processing and manufacturing plants establishment plan, are yet to take off. Rural water supply, particularly the Old Kibichori, Chwele, Ng'oli, Namwela/Chesabiti and Lwandanyi systems, as well as the Namwela-Sirisia-Lwakhakha road, are taken very seriously by the electorate. However, the most emotive issue is creation of the new Bungoma West district, under which the constituency now falls, and the subsequent location of its capital at Chwele market. This is contrary to the wishes of most people in Sirisia and Malakisi, who wanted it to be at Sirisia market. Foreign affairs assistant minister Moses Wetang'ula beat former MP John Munyasia for the Narc nomination in 2002 and went on to win the General Election. A close ally is regional Ford Kenya supremo, Local Government minister Musikari Kombo. Mr Wetang'ula has been embroiled in a growing tussle within Ford Kenya. Meanwhile, the pro-Kibaki party, Narc Kenya, and the main opposition group, ODM Kenya, are making inroads in the area. Major (Rtd) John Waluke of Narc-Kenya is using the district headquarters issue to woo voters in the two divisions. On February 10, this year, Maj Waluke led hundreds of former Ford-K supporters to join Narc-K at Mayuba Stadium. The group was received by the then interim chairman, Mukhisa Kituyi. However, it remains to be seen whether the party will make an impact on the ground if Dr Kituyi does not get its chairmanship. Mr Waluke, who had declared his intention to join Ford-K, moved out shortly after the grassroots elections where two sets of officials were said to have been elected. The party's head office gave Mr Wetang'ula's group the nod. But the Narc-K ticket is by no means guaranteed, as it is also being sought by Mr Rudolf Masika, an engineer, and Mr Eric Makokha. Mr Wetang'ula will be counting on support from the Nalondo and Chwele areas, where he has a considerable following. For the Ford-K nomination, Mr Wetang'ula will battle it out with Mr Mark Wanjala Barasa, who entered the fray in early March this year. Mr Barasa is from Khachonge in Nalondo division. He says the constituency needs a change of guard because the incumbent is fond of making "unilateral decisions with no room for participatory politics, and is also intolerant to positive criticism". "My party of choice is Ford-K. I will be challenging Mr Wetang'ula for the ticket, but if I am rigged out, I will consider other options," he said. Mr Munyasia is hoping to stage a comeback on an ODM-K ticket after walking out of Ford-K before it conducted grassroots elections. The former MP had shown signs of that move when he supported the Orange camp during the Draft Constitution Referendum. Just 5,013 "No" votes were recorded in the constituency, against 27,883 "Yes" votes. Whether Mr Munyasia can recover lost ground from his new-found home is a matter only time will tell. Insurance executive Peter Kokonya will be trying his luck on Kaddu, the party of former Cabinet minister Cyrus Jirongo. Slow implementation of rural electrification programme, particularly at the border town of Lwakhakha, will be another campaign issue, as will be low prices of sugar cane, particularly in Nalondo. Many farmers are contracted to Nzoia Sugar Company. For a long time, cane growers from the area have been asking the Government to subsidise the cost of farm inputs, particularly seed and fertilisers, to cushion them from losses. Enditem