Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has said the Western region is ready to work with the Government for the benefit of its people.
Mudavadi urged leaders in Parliament from the region to stay focused, especially with the budget-making process saying development begins with the allocation of resources.
As National Assembly Speaker, Moses Wetangula and himself represent the region at the executive level, Mudavadi said legislators should be alert in Parliament to ensure Western Kenya gets its fair share of resource allocation.
“I want to set the records straight that we are not scared to support the government. We made a conscious decision to support President William Ruto since we realized the other side did not mean well for our people,” said Mudavadi.
He was speaking in Budalang’i when he attended the funeral service of the late Mzee James Osogo, one of the last surviving cabinet ministers during the late President Jomo Kenyatta’s reign.
“Truth be said, during President Uhuru’s regime allocation of resources to our region was very skewed. President Ruto has come in and has shown us he is ready to work with us. This opportunity that has presented itself should be embraced fully,” he said.
Mudavadi said it is time elected leaders from the region join hands in fighting for key allocation of resources for the region.
“Those who are busy telling our people not to support the President’s development agenda are enemies of progress and we should not listen to them at all,” he insisted.
Adding: “We fully understand as a government that we are in a bad state economically. What we are working on is to ensure we steadily change the line of thinking and the journey to economic empowerment has begun,” said Mudavadi.
He reiterated his call to Western Kenya leaders to unite and work together for the benefit of the region. He noted that the region has a huge potential that remains untapped, even as he called on the leaders to take advantage of the President’s leadership and grow the economy.
He said the just concluded Western Kenya tour by the President has opened key development avenues for the people in the region.
“Unity of purpose is key for us if we want to realise economic growth for our people. We need to appreciate as leaders we are from different political formations but we need to work together for the common good of our people and region,” he said.
He termed President Ruto’s visit to Western Kenya as timely saying the region has been lagging behind in terms of development as previous regimes neglected the region.
“We have lost so much time in politics that is not progressive. Other regions are not waiting for us. We need to pull together and realize that our people need development,” he affirmed.
Osogo died on August 15 at Aga Khan Hospital in Kisumu aged 91.
