Stop tantrums, give Ruto time, Ongwae tells Odinga

Former Kisii Governor James Ongwae has told his former party boss Raila Odinga to give President William Ruto time to execute pledges he made to the electorate.

Ongwae said six months in office was stillna short period for Odinga to reach a verdict that Ruto has failed.

“We have a president in office, let’s all og us support him, as an expert in management myself my advice to Odinga is this you cannot start criticizing someone’s performance six months to office, let’s be fair, let’s give the president time, am sure he will change this country, “said Ongwae.

Throwing tantrums, said Ongwae is unnecessary at this stage.

He instead called for peaceful discourses where issues can be genuinely be discussed so the country is not balkanised.

” Going to the streets, instigating demonstrations is unhelpful in times like this, “Ongwae said of his former boss in the Azimio Coalition.

The former ODM governor who has since joined Ruto was speaking during a burial at Sombogo in Kitutu Chache North on Friday .

His calls for dialogue were also backed by Senator Richard Onyonka.

Onyonka however broke ranks saying Odinga’s concerns were genuine and must be addressed by Ruto.

” Mzee (Odinga) is not asking for a handshake but a conversation about the direction the country is heading. Kenyans are hurting,” said Onyonka.

The Kenya Kwanza government, said Onyonka, is yet to reflect a national face especially with the political appointments.

He also cautioned Ruto against being vindictive and revengeful on people who served in the Uhuru government

He asked him grant them, among them former Interior CS Fred Matiangi, peaceful retirement.

Onyonka also said he is ready to mediate between Ruto and Odinga if that is what is needed to direct the country’s feet into the right political direction.

On Friday , Odinga vowed to continue piling pressure on President William Ruto’s administration to ease the cost of living, reduce taxes and become more inclusive.

He has already crafted the Movement for the Defence of Democracy as the political outfit which he will use to push for reforms in Ruto government.

He has already promised peaceful protests, sit-ins and boycotts of some products and companies as part of the push.

Odinga now vowd a grand demo on March 20 in Nairobi.

Ongwae said such street demos were a distraction to the Ruto government urging Odinga to give them a break.

“They cannot help us move an inch forward, they are just a distraction,”, he stated.

Amd speaking on local politics, Ongwae told his predecessor Simba Arati to begin securing his legacy instead of dwelling in the past. .

He accused Arati of orchestrating a smear campaigning against him saying this could be unhelpful in the long run.

“My plain advice is that he should take charge of the county and begin serving the people, not nitpicking what i did and what i did not during my term in office as a governor,” Ongwae said.

The former County boss said he has noted with concern that ever since Arati was sworn into office, much of his energy has been directed at criticizing everything he did during his ten years in office. .

” We are not angels, each leader is bound make mistakes but this should not be his song. In an ideal situation each person should concentrate on building their legacy ,” Ongwae said.

His sentiments were backed by Senator Richard Onyonka who was present. .

Onyonka described Arati has a ‘man difficult to work with and who needs sincere prayers from the clergy’.

On Thursday, KlGovernor Simba Arati faulted Ongwae for approaving payments for projects not done or completed while he was in office.

A special committee doing a pending bills audit has since recommended a scale down in the payments from Sh 1.6 billion to Sh 235 million for projects done and completed.

Arati says he is still scrutinizing projects worth sh 130 million done by contractors without credible papers if they deserve payments.

He faulted officers who served under Ongwae for orchestrations graft through payments for projects.

Arati further vowed to surrender all officers cited adversely in the report to the authorities for action.

“Forgiveness can only come from God, not me. I would only ensure that justice is done by handing you to courts for prosecution,” he said in a televised function.

On Friday, however Ongwae said he did his bit as a governor with a clean heart and must be left in peace.

“I am now out of office, let whoever is now office do his part,”, said Ongwae.

He told Arati to stop his tantrums and concentrate on service delivery.

Ongwae cited many hospitals that he set up that need staffing and drugs to help the residents as areas Arati should give priority.

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