Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho‘s brother has officially joined the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), a party heavily linked with Kenya’s Deputy President William Ruto.
While being officially received by former Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar on Monday, November 15, Mohamed Amir said he is a strong believer in the bottom-up economic model, championed by Ruto.
Hassan Joho’s brother said he is targeting the Mombasa senatorial seat in the 2022 General Election.
Reports have it that the ODM party is crowded with seasoned politicians who appear to be Raila Odinga’s close allies, something that could likely lock out some of the aspirants.
For instance, the ODM party has attracted at least five aspirants jostling for the ODM ticket to succeed Hassan Joho whereas UDA has only one candidate warming up for the same seat.
In January 2021, Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho dismissed calls by Coast leaders allied to the deputy president to form a new political party in the region, saying it will flop.
He said politicians behind the new push are self-seeking individuals who, like William Ruto, have nothing new to offer to the region apart from serving their own interests.
“The people behind this push are selfish leaders and those rejected in the previous elections that have essentially sold their souls to Ruto and joined his campaign of fraud and lies that all sensible Kenyans know is doomed to fail,” Joho said in a statement.
In a move to revive the declining influence of the ODM party that has voted as a bloc in recent elections, last month, the ODM party picked Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho’s stepbrother Mohammed Hamid Khamis as the new Mombasa county chair.
Dhee, as he is popularly known, replaced former nominated Member of County Assembly and powerful Finance Committee Chair the late Mohammed Hatimy.
