He’s not our candidate - Wiper distances itself from Sonko’s Mombasa gubernatorial bid

Wiper Democratic Movement has dismissed reports that it cleared ex-Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko to contest for the party ticket for the Mombasa gubernatorial  seat. On Monday, IEBC published names of candidates that had been presented for nominations;with Sonko’s names appearing as one of the candidates set to battle out for Wiper's ticket in Mombasa. While defending the move, Sonko said Mombasa County is his home, therefore he qualifies to vie and defend the interest of the Coastal people. "I am going for Mombasa county gubernatorial seat on Wiper party under Azimio, I am a national leader and Mombasa is still my hometown," Sonko said. Reacting to Sonko’s name featuring on the IEBC list, Wiper Secretary General Shakila Abdalla noted that the party had already agreed to back Kisauni MP Ali Mbogo for the seat, adding that he was handed a direct ticket at Wiper’s National Delegates Congress at the Bomas of Kenya. "Were you in our NDC at Bomas? I believe you saw the nomination certificate given to Ali Mbogo. I'm not sure about Sonko's case but what I know is that Mr Mbogo was given the nomination certificate," Ms Abdalla was quoted by Nation. [caption id="attachment_15204" align="alignnone" width="720"] Wiper-Kenya leader Kalonzo Musyoka welcomes former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko to the party after he joined as a life member. |Courtesy| Facebook|[/caption] The former Nairobi Governor bolted out of the ruling Jubilee party in March, 2022 and joined the Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka-led Wiper party. Speaking during a past interview, Sonko noted that he wanted to join UDA party but faced numerous hurdles. He further noted that he was keen to join anew party before the deadline prescribed by the Registrar of Political Parties. “I was to register with UDA first but I was mistreated. I wanted to join them after resigning from Jubilee but SG Ms Veronica Maina sabotaged my registration…They are treating politicians badly and if the behavior continues then they are going to lose many political leaders. “I had to ditch Jubilee to join another party. There were constitutional timelines for every politician to be in a party before the expiry period which was Saturday midnight,” Sonko told Nation.