Inside Bahati MP Aspirant Irene Njoki’s 7-Point Manifesto

With the August General Election only 4 months away, the race for Bahati parliamentary seat currently held by vocal DP William Ruto ally Kimani Ngunjiri will be one of the most hotly contested posts following the entry of a fresh candidate: Irene Njoki.

Njoki is a philanthropist and career civil servant who recently quit her role as Personal Assistant to Transport Cabinet Secretary (CS) James Macharia.

The upcoming politician who is yet to declare her political party has adopted a strategy of empowerment programmes for youth and women which has seen her gain a fast rise in popularity among Bahati voters.

The aspirant whose slogan is #MremboNaKazi says she joined elective politics to fill the wide gap of servant leadership in her constituency which the incumbent has failed to achieve.

Below we have analyzed several key development pillars in Irene Njoki’s campaign manifesto that seeks to uplift the living standards of Bahati residents.

At the top of her agenda is education, youth and women empowerment, water access, talents, roads and security.

1. Education

Under current MP Kimani Ngunjiri, the level of education in Bahati has not been impressive.

Once elected she intends to play a major role in improving the school infrastructure in line with the recently implemented CBC programme.

2. Youth and Women empowerment

Part of Njoki’s plan is to lobby for more youth empowerment programs from the national government which shall be complemented by other initiatives from the partners who she expects to bring on board thanks to the many friendships she has built throughout her illustrious career.

This, combined with the prudent use of the National Government-Constituency Development Fund is certainly bound to change the lives of the youth, women and upcoming generations in Bahati.

3. Access to Water

The water supply in Nakuru City and Bahati at large is inadequate forcing the population to resort to poor quality water.

While this is a devolved function, Njoki has set up a plan to implore the national government into ensuring a steady supply of water.

One way will be by drilling more boreholes in all five Wards in Bahati.

4. Promoting sports and talent

Under Njoki’s leadership, the talented youth of Bahati will be provided with platforms to showcase their prowess in various talents.

This will be achieved through sports programs done in conjunction with relevant sports bodies in the country.

5. Roads

Considering that Nakuru City is now one of the fastest-growing counties in terms of business and opportunities, part of Njoki’s agenda entails prioritizing the improvement of roads within the constituency, including linking roads to neighbouring constituencies.

6. Security

Under a partnership with the national government, the aspirant intends to beef up security within Bahati by lobbying for the deployment of more security personnel within the constituency.

She will also partner with Nyumba Kumi clusters to ensure security is enhanced even in the remotest of areas.

7. Environment and garbage

The sewage network in Nakuru City covers a very limited area and with frequent blockages.

Through her administration, she plans to initiate a campaign to clean up our rivers and the drainage systems in conjunction with the County Government and the National Environment Management Authority.

Additionally, she intends to mobilize and establish Ward and residential communities level garbage pickers into garbage collection Saccos.

Who is Irene Njoki?

As mentioned at the beginning of this post, Irene Njoki is an experienced and devoted civil servant who was born in Bahati constituency, Nakuru County in December 1975.

Family is one of her greatest pillars.

She is married with two children aged 21 and 18 years respectively.

In terms of education, she holds a Master’s Degree in Strategic Management from Daystar University as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Marketing (First Class Honors) from Africa Nazarene University.

Njoki started my career as a personal assistant to the Marketing Manager at the New Stanley Hotel before moving to Kensta Group, where she served as an assistant to the Managing Director.

In 2005, she joined NCBA Bank as the Executive Personal Assistant to the Managing Director.

She acknowledges that during this time, she learned a lot about the banking sector.

After working in the private sector for over 15 years, in 2013, she joined the government as Personal Assistant to Cabinet Secretary Ministry of Health.

Thereafter she moved to the Ministry of Transport, Infrastructure, Housing, Urban Development and Public Works, Shipping and Maritime in the same capacity before quitting for politics.

“I believe the constituency needs a change of leadership. I want to be part of the change that I have been yearning for and that is why I am offering myself to the voter,” she told the KenyanDigest.

“My experience in management at different levels gives me an edge over the rest and I believe that given the opportunity, we can make Bahati Constituency great beyond the expectation,” she adds.

Ngunjiri who is feeling the heat of stiff competition from voter favourite Irene Njoki has even threatened to quit UDA if he is not given a direct ticket.

While addressing UDA allied MPs after today’s humiliation, the outspoken MP said that the only way he can work with DP Ruto is if he gets a direct ticket.

His move has been interpreted in some quarters as blackmail tactics by the MP who has lost support on the ground.

Recent opinion polls in Bahati Constituency have shown that the Two time Jubilee MP is drastically losing touch with his People and if elections were to be conducted today he may lose his seat to Irene Njoki.

She has also indicated readiness to give Ngunjiri a run for his money after she acquired a fleet of jeeps which she has been using in her campaigns and visibility in the constituency.

However, it will not be a walk in the park for her as Ngunjiri was elected to Parliament in 2017 with the highest number of votes-59,150 in the county.

Other contenders in the race include Nakuru businessman John Mbugua, Paul Mwaura, Steve Kihara who are yet to officially declare their political parties.