As the October 14 Kiagu Ward by-election is getting closer day by day, the zoning of the MCA seat has always been one of the most talked about issues in the ward.
It usually sparks reactions and arguments in Kiagu.
When Safina Party Of Kenya candidate Douglas Bundi Kirimi was talking to Baite TV, he made these three statements on the roles of an MCA which many Kiagu Ward residents may love to hear.
County Governments Act No. 17 of 2012
Bundi said the work of an MCA involves three main roles which include representation, oversight and drafting laws of the county.
Bundi said that aspirants lie to the residents knowing they do not have the capacity to deliver funds to the residence or build roads.
“And that is where many aspirants are failing the test,” said Bundi.
Bundi said that Kiagu ward residents should not blame the late Kiagu Ward MCA Eunice Karegi and her staff for the alleged misappropriation of the Mutethia Water project public funds.
“The candidate who will be elected on the 14th of October will be a Member of the County Assembly representing the residents of Kiagu and won’t tasked with knowing on the whereabouts of the public funds allocated by the Meru County Government,” said Bundi.
He said insisted that residents should inquire about the Mutethia Water project public funds from the relevant offices in the Meru County government.
“The MCAs do not go to the assembly to drink tea. The role of the MCA is to submit a motion or a bill in the county assembly,” said Bundi.
“The other role of the MCA is representation whereby if I will be elected on October 14th by the Kiagu ward residents, I will be able to represent them in the county assembly.
“For example, If it happens that there is an old woman in Kiagu Ward whose land is being grabbed I’m tasked with raising a statement in the county assembly directed to the minister of lands regarding the issue.
“If there is another issue such as problems with a school, I can also raise another statement.
“By presentation it means that I Douglas Bundi Kirimi can be able to go to Nairobi and represent my people’s dream.
“The other role of the MCA is oversight and that is where all the aspirants are going wrong because they do not understand what being an MCA entails.
“For example, when the former ward administrator, Harun Muthamia represented the office of the Meru governor in the ward.
“The role of the ward administrator is to coordinate with other offices of the County government.
“The oversight role of the MCA is to oversee how public money is being spent in Kiagu Ward or how it was spent by the Meru County government because I am a member representing the people of Kiagu Ward.
“As an MCA, you should be able to oversee how public property is being used.
“By overseeing how public money is being used means that when Kiagu is allocated Ksh 10M by the office of the governor for building roads, an MCA should compare it to the completed project and liaise with the contractor to prove that the project is worth that amount of money.
Bund said another important role of an MCA is to be able to network on his own and take development projects to the ward after reaching out to networks.
