Senator Kiraitu Murungi will gun for the governor's seat come 2017. His decision to run for the top office in Meru county has taken many by surprise coming just a few months after he publicly denied any interest in the seat.
The current governor, Peter Gatirau Munya, will have a difficult time retaining his seat judging by Kiraitu's popularity across the county. In fact the governor owes his success during the 2013 elections to Mr. Kiraitu who decided to support Munya for the job owing partly to his loyalty then.
But things have changed since the last elections. Whereas governor Munya was a close ally and a key member of Kiraitu Murungi's Alliance party of Kenya, the latter has decided that APK will be dissolved in favour of the Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP) come 2017. The governor has also fallen out with other leaders in the county who were instrumental in his election.
The fallout between governor Munya and Senator Kiraitu Murungi marks a new dawn in Meru politics. But it could also usher in tribal rivalry between the two key sub-tribes namely Kiraitu's Imenti and Munya's Tigania. However, analysts suggest that this might not be the case in 2017 because Kiraitu Murungi seems to enjoy the support of all elected leaders from both communities.
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Kiraitu Murungi has in recent days come under pressure from Meru MPs and a section of MCAs to unseat the governor who has lost favour with majority of Meru residents. Almost all MPs accuse the governor of sidelining them in decision making. Local politicians led by Igembe MP Mithika Linturi, Women representative Florence Kajuju and North Imenti MP Rahim Dawood have endorsed Kiraitu as the man most suitable to lead Meru in 2017.
Senator Kiraitu is said to have told a meeting of political leaders from Mount Kenya East that he had listened to their requests and would run for the governorship in 2017. The meting was held a his Heritage hotel in Nkubu and was attended by political leaders from Meru, Embu and Tharaka Nithi counties.
