Elected Marsabit leaders make passionate pleas for peace
Newly elected Marsabit leaders, from left: Naomi Wako (woman rep), Mohammed Chute (senator) and Mohamud Ali (governor). They have called on residents to maintain peace and unity.
Passionate pleas for reconciliation, peace, tolerance and unity on Friday dominated the congratulatory speeches made by the newly elected leaders in Marsabit County.
Marsabit governor-elect Mohamud Ali, Senator-elect Mohammed Chute, and Woman Rep-elect Naomi Wako issued impassioned pleas to the residents to bury their differences and live cohesively.
Throughout his speech, Mr Ali referred to pivotal moments in the region’s history that had led to constant bloodletting in the county.
“I am deeply humbled by all the voters who voted for me to serve for another term as the governor of this county. However, I plead with all other defeated contestants to accept the defeat and join hands with us so that we can have a united, cohesive, and harmonious county,” Mr Ali said.
Expressed gratitude
Governor-elect Ali expressed his gratitude to the residents for re-electing him to serve them for another term.
He said that he had a special respect for his opponents who lost, stating that their defeat did not mean they were not worthy contenders.
He urged all those who were defeated to accept the loss and join hands with those who won in various seats for the sake of the cohesiveness of the county that had been volatile for the last three years.
Mr Ali held that the ability to honourably admit defeat by political contestants in any poll was the best way of avoiding any unnecessary political chaos.
He commended the woman rep candidate in the 2022 general election who gracefully accepted defeated by her opponent Naomi Wako Jilloh.
Help county heal
Mr Ali urged other contestants to follow suit and help the county heal from the past ethnic-based violence.
He vowed to make peace building his key agenda in his second term in office.
The governor-elect also pledged to ensure that there would be equitable resource allocation by the devolved unit to all wards across the county.
Mr Ali is a surveyor by profession who joined politics in 2007 as the Moyale MP, later became NHIF executive chairperson until 2017 when he became the second Marsabit governor.
Senator-elect Chute also urged all the ethnic communities and all political contestants to resolve any dissatisfaction with the polls through the right channels as he called upon the residents to embrace peace and avoid any possible chaos.
Ms Wako, the woman rep-elect also urged Marsabit residents to ensure that there is lasting peace and cohesion.
“I will ensure that we all join hands and work collaboratively with the elected leaders to deliver the most required services to our residents,” Ms Wako said.
She pleaded with the local leaders and residents to ensure that the regional co-existence is rooted in the pursuit of justice and a change of systems which recognise the importance of uplifting the poor and the oppressed.
