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Western MPs baffled by Atwoli's growing political influence

Cotu Secretary General Francis Atwoli and President Uhuru Kenyatta during a past Labour Day celebrations at Uhuru Park in Nairobi.

So how powerful and influential is Cotu secretary general Francis Atwoli? Well, this is the question some Western politicians who do not see eye-to-eye with the SG were heard asking. They wondered why powerful politicians and Cabinet Secretaries, including those fearing they could be sacked, are seeking Atwoli’s blessing. They said that a governor from Central who was recently facing difficult times was among the people who trooped to Atwoli’s Kajiado home to ask for protection. The politicos recalled how a powerful Cabinet team landed in Western this week, just weeks after Atwoli and Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya led other Western Kenya leaders into a meeting with Uhuru.


They say Kenyanpolitics is ethnic-based and this is what is  confronting a team of MPs from the Coast region. A mole in the know says leaders from the region that has traditionally voted for ODM leader Raila Odinga (pictured) in the previous presidential races met on Sunday to brainstorm the direction the region will take on 2022 succession politics. The meeting said to have been attended by a governor, a deputy governor and three MPs concluded that the region will be uncomfortable siding with a certain community and they would rather embark on a new route ahead of 2022. Why they took the strong position remain a matter of speculation.


A leader of a professional body has astonished members of the organisation with his recently acquired sense of entitlement. Members of the respected body  whisper to Corridors that their leader who until recently was a people person has now become so inaccessible that they now need to book appointments to see him. Not just that, the man who is said to feel out of this world when referred to as 'Mr President' no longer pick calls from his members. He has communicated to them that owing to his stature, the members will have to call him through his personal assistant. The members said compared to the previous leaders, this one is proving to be the worst one in the history of the organisation.


A wife of a lawmaker from Western Kenya is increasingly becoming a pain in the neck of contractors’ assigned Constituency Development Fund projects. A section of the contractors accuse the spouse of the MP of constantly harassing them for handouts and kickbacks.  Those who fail to grease the palms of the 'First Lady' - who is also a tenderpreneur - are threatened with dire consequences that include not getting further jobs or prompt payments. Word has it that the better half of the legislator has also allocated herself CDF projects through proxy companies, a clear case of conflict of interest.

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