BY JEFF OTIENO
London trained Medical Doctor cum Hotelier Dr. Hezron Mackobewa has joined the race for Kisumu County Governor.
The medic made the declaration early this week in a Kisumu Hotel in a colourful ceremony which was attended by his native Kano Clan Elders and Kisumu County Key Stakeholders.
Dr. Mackobewa aged 40 years told the attentive gathering, that his quest has been precipitated by the County Wealth potential which has not been tapped well for decades and he has ideas to ensure that status quo is changed if given the chance by the Electorate.
He hails from Ombeyi in Kano and has got chains of hotels webbing across the region. The medic is also the Director of OGRA FOUNDATION which is being credited for offering education and medical support to the destitute through their well laid outreach programmes since early 2000.
The wealthy and soft spoken medic cum hotelier will rely on his grassroot network to propel his bid. He will however contend to battle it out with a group of equally vibrant, well educated and monied aspirants among them Mumias Sugar employee incharge of Business Development and Water Peter Hongo.
He hails from Kogony Clan (native) and has been criss crossing the terrain for a couple of years doing harambees for schools, churches and sponsoring bright but poor students a move which has really catapulted him to a force to reckon with. The youthful tycoon was one of the brains which made Mumias Sugar to be unrivalled in the sugar industry during the term of the immediate former C.E.O Dr. Evans Kidero.
London based Insurance Executive Simon Ogendo the son of former Kisumu Mayor Ogendo Ponge has also joined the fray. Ogendo who has been busy for now two months overseas since he declared told this journalist during a recent telephone interview that he has finalized his campaign strategy and will soon hit the road before the end of August.
Atieno Otieno who is a Nairobi based Lawyer cum business-woman has also been aggressively campaigning. She has been busy appealing to men to realize that time for discriminating against gender is parochial and overtaken by events.
Another candidate is Ruth Odinga, the sister to Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Ruth has been on the ground trying to counter her critics that being Prime Minister’s Sister shouldn’t be a harbinger to her quest.
But in an area where clannism politics seem to be the hallmark of everything, it remains to be seen what change her bid will have on the litmus paper. She’s the Managing Director of Kisumu Molasses Plant, a company associated with the family.
Former Town Clerk and Cabinet Minister Ojwang Kombudo has also vowed that age is nothing but a number. Kombudo says he has what it takes in terms of experience and his tenure as a clerk of Kisumu Municipality and as a Minister is crystal clear and unrivalled. He come from Lower Nyakach and is nearing 80 years.
Crowing the list is former Kenya Revenue Authority Commissioner Jack Ranguma who is a native of Kano-Kobura. He has been very active in the ground but he seems to have run out of steam due to the fact that he started abit early.
END
This is the time Kisumu County Residents will make the choice of who governs their resources, It is my belief that ALL our votes are with Dr. Hezron McObewa, you can follow the events and read what he has done in each constituency in the County in the last 10 Years, here http://www.mcobewa.com – if anybody has a longer list of development in the region, let them list theirs, we are not going to vote on the theory of what is going to be done.
I tend to disagree with Danny since i know macobewa and have even worked for him. Macobewa is an arrogant character with dictatorial management style who under pay his staff with some owed over six months arrear to date and i wonder what kind of a governor he might be God forbid.
All the project he claims are funded by donors to his berichment! can macobewa tell us he is a doctor in what? where have he worked if not with NGOs where he divert funds to his own benefit.
macobewa always use money for bribes to get what he want and even in registrations of some questionable schools and college. Majority of his employees comes from his home area nyando or kano. I wonder if we need such characters to be governor of kisumu.
Onyi
I think all these years you have been waiting for some manna from heaven and this medic rescued you once but because you cannot keep even the little you have, you ended up losing the job you had!
So how come the medic still employs a good number of people? How come you have not brought any donor monies that you claim the medic misuses… if you did this, do you think you would need the job he once offered you and which you no longer have? If he has registered schools, dont you think students therein are gaining some meaningful knowledge to help the medic replace you at his establishments?
I think the doctor has done a great job for this community in Health, Education and Food Security. He has raised the funds to do this alone; something that many including Onyi cant manage due to fear of the unknown!
He has my vote simply because I want him to continue on this road and to raise the budget deficit for the country through his external contacts. I hope that with the little resources that will be allocated by the central govt, this medic will help improve Kisumu…
Intelligent blogs allowed!
DN
Domtila.
for ur information i left the under paying job n frasting rattling employer to a prestigious one in south africa.
i know u are a beneficiary of mac obewa’s ill gotten wealth n his fling in town. Well its ur democratic right bt we will nt allow tainted people 2lead us at all cost even if it means going 2 court
At last the coward bowed out of the race! let him fleece the NGOs. He bribed his way to be NGO Cordinator despite being number last in the interview Raila helped him to get the job! i wonder if real billionaires need public jobs! what a looser!
McObewa is not a good leader as potrayed by this journalist. My vote is between William Oduor (i hope people dont judge him based on his Siaya roots) and Dr. Abonyo. We need people who do not subscribe to mob kisumu clans. we need a true professional to run kisumu as the next governor. and that is Oduor in my opinion!!.