Mwangi wa Iria Joins Azimio la Umoja

Muranga Governor, Mwangi wa Iria, has joined the Azimio la Umoja coalition.

The Usawa Kwa Wote Party leader announced on Tuesday, July 19 that he joined the coalition under flagbearer Raila Odinga.

Wa Iria was eyeing the presidency on the Usawa Kwa Wote party ticket before the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) refused to clear him.

Addressing the media at a hotel in Nairobi, wa Iria noted that Raila liked his idea of including his programme of every cow per household as part of the coalition manifesto. He had initially planned to introduce it in the event he is elected president in the August 9 general elections.

Mwangi wa Iria addressing the media on July 19, 2022, on joining the Azimio la Umoja coalition. /TWITTER

"I believe a cow is a peasant's kiosk and I told him that in my manifesto, I have a program which I want to implement for this republic starting from my county called 'One home, One cow'.

"I believe that it is the easiest way to eradicate poverty at the household level in areas which are agricultural. So I told him that if I would have become the president, I would have immediately introduced the 'one home one cow' programme amongst all subsistence farmers earning below a particular level of income," he addressed.

Wa Iria also gave Raila an economic breakdown of the benefits of the programme before suggesting a combination of it and the former Prime Minister's Ksh6,000 monthly stipend.

"I told him I would have done that because I know a cow delivering five litres of milk in the morning, in the evening...10 litres at Ksh40 is Ksh400 times 30 is Ksh12,000. I told him (Raila) that if we can combine your Ksh6,000 and my cow programme, my programme can give Ksh12,000 to all peasant farmers in the country, which is US$3 a day per household.

"The international poverty line is a dollar a day, as prescribed by World Bank. I told him that if I have to work with you, the one home one cow must be in our joint manifesto, the Usawa-Azimio manifesto, and he said if you agree that we work together, then we shall adapt the programme as part of the joint manifesto. We did a deal and he said that is going to happen," he said.

Wa Iria, while noting that his supporters would rally behind Raila, accused the Kenya Kwanza coalition in the Mt Kenya region led by Deputy President William Ruto's running mate, Rigathi Gachagua, of turning a blind eye on the grassroots leaders.

"It has reached a level where people think that they are the Kings of Murang'a. I am the de facto leader of Muranga and I have been their leader for 10 years dealing with their problems every day and that is why they have been voting for me," he said.

Iria further expressed that he will demand Raila to give him a position in his Cabinet should Azimio emerge victorious on August 9.

"If I get to the Cabinet, I will implement all the programmes because I have the knowledge. The people of Murang'a should therefore rally behind me and we shall demand that Raila gives me a cabinet position," he said.

Wa Iria is serving his second and final term as Murang'a Governor. His disqualification by the IEBC provoked dramatic confrontations between him and the commission, one of them occurring at the Bomas of Kenya on Monday, May 30. 

He was protesting the commission's decision to bar him from the presidential race, demanding an audience from chairperson Wafula Chebukati by any means necessary.

Murang'a Governor Mwangi wa Iria causes a standoff at Bomas of Kenya, blocking the main gate.#ViralVideos pic.twitter.com/QH1KpN2Ckn — Viral Tea Kenya (@ViralTeaKe) May 30, 2022