By MN Reporter

Kuria East MP Marwa Kitayama has said despite sangwenya political gang heckling Kuria leaders during Kisii BBI rally, proposal for their new county has reached the taskforce.

Speaking to Migori News over the phone on Tuesday, Kitayama confirmed that several leaders from Migori led by senator Ochillo Ayacko and his Kuria West counterpart Mathias Robi officially tabled the proposal last week.

“During the Kisii BBI rally, governors hijacked the process and attempt by Kuria to table the proposal for a new county was ignored to the last minute including sangwenya’s being hired to heckle us down,” Kitayama said.

He said the gang was paid up to travel, heckle and boo leaders from Migori while a call for Kuria county was supported by other Nyanza counties.

“I was given an opportunity at the rally in Kisii to speak and despite heckling and denial to include our proposal, our aim is now officially in BBI taskforce mandate,” he said.

He said the heckling was a blessing in disguise as it showed to the world the need for Kuria to feel included in devolution by a new county.

“We have had skewed development in world bank, corruption and nepotism against the community, but we have rallied around having our own county as Kuria main agenda,” Kitayama said.

Earlier the community also wrote a memorandum to BBI 1 to have their own county and felt disappointed when it was not factored in.

“We still have hope for our own county as Kuria as a community is number 14 out of 46 most populous tribe in Kenya with about 30 per cent of Migori population,” he said.

Kitayama said out of Sh8.5billion annually given to Migori county, the new county will only need Sh2.5billion to have an impact in development.