Gloves come off in Ongwae-Maangi tiff as claims of graft bandied about

The falling-out between Kisii Governor James Ongwae and his deputy Joash Maangi has yet again erupted, spilling into various government agencies, the county assembly and threatening to disrupt service delivery.

The squabbling has split county employees, members of the assembly, professionals, as well as locals, turning the county government offices and assembly grounds into a battlefield.

Though Mr Ongwae has not publicly come out to talk about the tiff with his deputy, Mr Maangi has come out guns blazing, seemingly fighting Mr Ongwae by himself and through proxies by citing massive corruption in the county government, which he is part of.

In a case of the hunter becoming the hunted, Mr Maangi, who has been calling on the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) to investigate his boss, was on Wednesday summoned to appear before the anti-corruption agency over allegations that he filed false information during the 2017 elections.

Mr Maangi spent the better part of the morning responding to claims that he falsified information provided in his self-declaration forms submitted to the EACC before the elections.

He said the allegations emanated from a traffic violation while he lived in the United States several years back.

“I do not deny it. I was arrested in the US for what they call a DUI -- driving under the influence. I was not convicted and jailed for a period of six months or more,” he said.

But it is the allegations Mr Maangi made after being questioned by EACC, accusing his boss, Mr Ongwae and some senior officers in the county of being behind his woes that are at the centre of the current feud.

He called on the anti-corruption agency to investigate the governor, saying he had presided over massive corruption in the county government, unprocedural employment and issuing of tenders. He, however, did not offer evidence to support his claims.

Speaker's removal

The county assembly has been turned into a battle ground for the two leaders, roping in Speaker David Kombo, a key ally of Mr Ongwae.

Last week on Tuesday, ward reps voted to remove the speaker, but the votes failed to meet the threshold to remove him.

The assembly has 68 MCAs and Mr Kombo needed only 23 MCAs on his side to survive the impeachment.

The battle for the removal of the speaker, however, on Tuesday evening, took an ugly turn after suspected political hooligans attacked MCAs who have been seeking to impeach the speaker.

At least three MCAs supporting the speaker’s ouster have since been arrested and charged in court with destroying county government property.

Last week, Mr Kombo was suspended from office following allegations of mismanagement and allegedly being high-handed in the running of the assembly.

Mr Kombo's suspension was preceded by a failed impeachment and will run for 14 days before MCAs determine his fate.

The rowdy youths who were armed with crude weapons descended on the unsuspecting MCAs, injuring a number of them.

With stones flying, the MCAs' vehicles were extensively damaged as some of them fled on foot.

Curiously, police who had been guarding the County Assembly building sneaked out of the area after they realised that there was a group out to attack the leaders.

Trouble started after about 40 ward reps walked out of Assembly chamber and started addressing journalists, before the apparently well organised gang attacked from nowhere.

It was not clear how and why the police fled the scene, leaving the MCAs to be beaten up.

Special probe

During the afternoon proceedings, which were presided over by acting Speaker Samuel Onuso, the House agreed to form a special ad-hoc committee to investigate Mr Kombo.

“The committee formed is mandated to probe the suspended speaker's conduct and undertake lifestyle audits on him and the former county assembly service board members," said Moticho MCA Evans Mokoro.

Teargas, running battles between MCAs and police and heckling has become the order of the day at the assembly grounds.

This is not the first time Mr Ongwae and Maangi are in conflict. Theirs has been a “marriage” fraught with betrayal, self-interest, broken agreements, and in good times, tolerance.

But even with the bickering in their first term after the 2013 election, Mr Ongwae still chose Mr Maangi for his deputy in 2017.

The deputy governor, at the time, said he had filed papers with Jubilee to contest the party primaries for Kisii governor but was prevailed upon by Deputy President William Ruto to stand down for Mr Chris Obure, who lost to Mr Ongwae.

It will be interesting to see how the relationship between Mr Ongwae and his deputy goes in the next two years given their rivalry now.

For the past two years, residents have been treated to drama as groups allied to either of the two meet and address press conferences castigating the other.

The differences in their second term came to light days before the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) Consultative meeting, held in January at Kisii Sports Club, and have kept escalating since.

Handshake politics

Mr Ongwae is a strong supporter of the handshake and the BBI and by extension, President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM Party Leader Raila Odinga.

Mr Maangi is Dr Ruto’s pointman in Gusii region and had vehemently opposed the BBI consultative meeting on claims that it was a waste of resources.

Mr Maangi claims he is being fought by his boss and promises not to relent on his calls to fight corruption in the county, which he claims has put him at loggerheads with Mr Ongwae.

The deputy county chief is known for party-hopping, something he claims is political smartness.

Just last month, Mr Maangi pledged to work with Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i, saying it will help bring about the unity of Abagusii.

In a surprise move that has left his supporters in confusion, the political about-turn by Mr Maangi is a blow to Mr Ruto, who has been banking on him to mobilise support in Gusii.

Mr Maangi made the unexpected declaration in Nyagesenda SDA church, in Kitutu Chache North, during a function attended by his boss, Mr Ongwae.

Also present during the announcement was Health Principal Secretary Susan Mochache, and Dr Matiang'i.

Mr Maangi said he was joining those championing unity of purpose for the sake of development in Gusii.

Call for unity

For several months, heightened political activities in the Gusii region from two political factions -- one for Dr Matiang’i and another for Dr Ruto -- have led to what sometimes looks like irreconcilable differences among the leaders in the community.

“We must work together and unite as a community. Today in this church, I want to assure our able CS Matiang’i that we will work together. A time has come we must put aside our political differences and unite our community,” said Mr Maangi.

In the run-up to the 2017 General Election, he made a sudden move to rejoin ODM after a two-year dalliance with Jubilee.

And like the Biblical prodigal son, Mr Odinga and Mr Ongwae happily received Mr Maangi, with a promise that he would retain his position as Mr Ongwae’s number two.

But the “bromance” after their re-election was short-lived. Mr Maangi and Mr Ongwae are now world apart and their relationship is getting messy. It is a wait and see scenario as the region continues to be treated to the drama.

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