Former Cabinet minister Simeon Nyachae has come out in defence of Education minister Sam Ongeri over the misappropriation of Sh4.2 billion meant for Free Primary Education. Nyachae said Ongeri is being targeted for political reasons and by extension the larger Gusii community. He challenged anyone with evidence against the minister to table it. “The Kisii community must stand behind Prof Ongeri and that does not mean that we condone corruption. There is no evidence whatsoever showing Prof Ongeri was in office at the ministry when the money was allegedly misappropriated,” he said.
Nyachae was speaking at a dinner hosted by the Gusii Leaders Consultative Forum held at a Nairobi hotel on Friday night, also attended by Ongeri. The Forum was convened by Justus Mochoge, Joash Nyamache, Justus Nyamwaya, Charles Ongoto and Luka Mogoa to discuss.
Nyachae branded as ‘hirelings’, activists who have been camping outside the Education ministry headquarters chanting anti-Ongeri slogans. “Who does not know that those people camping there are paid to do so? They are not genuine at all,” he said. “How comes no one is speaking about corruption claims in other ministries? Why are we not asking who were in charge when the monies started disappearing in 2003 at the inception of FPE?” Nyachaed asked. Ongeri warned that a disunited community risks failing in whatever aspirations that they make. “We recognise that unity is strength and without it our community will perish,” he added.
The two however clarified that the unity initiative was not meant to isolate the Omogusiii community from the rest of the communities in Kenya. “What we are saying is that unity first must begin from the village then spreads nationally. We must first unite our people before seeking to unite the country,” Ongeri said.
MPs Monda Onsare (Nyaribari Chache), Walter Nyambati (Kitutu Masaba), and Wilfred Ombui (North Mugirango/Borabu) attended the dinner. Present also were 12 former MPs, civic leaders, cultural, community, religious, and youth and women leaders. Speeches at the forum were dominated by talk of unity of purpose, with many warning against blindly supporting presidential candidates or political parties.
Nyachae and Ongeri said that the talks should not be perceived as promoting ethnicity in the country, but rather a people meeting to chart their destiny. “When we meet in places like this as Kisii leaders, people especially the media start saying they are practicing ethnicity. Who doesn’t belong to his or her tribe?” Nyachae quipped.
The former Nyaribari Chache MP said that God created people in their various ethnic communities which must be respected. “As a Christian, I know that even in the bible God recognised people in their 12 tribes of Israel. So those disowning their communities are disowning God too,” he said.
The PM should pursue the person who was the minister of education when the money was misappropriated, with the same intensity that he persued Ongeri.
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