Kisii Senator Sam Ongeri has officially declared his bid to succeed Kisii Governor James Ongwae in the 2022 elections.
The seasoned politician and a career medical doctor-pediatrician aged 83 years said he has resolved to bestow the remainder of his life to uplift the wellbeing of the residents of Kisii County.
“After years of service, I am sure I could easily have retired into a life of comfort and ease as an elder statesman, or as a beneficiary of any one of the nation’s many generous offerings,
“But I think I perfectly fit the criteria of the person Kisii needs at this point in time to take it to even greater heights,” Ongeri said as quoted by the Standard.
Ongeri is expected to give Dagoreti North Member of Parliament Simba Arati a run for his money as they both seek to succeed Governor James Ongwae whose second and last term ends in 2022.
The Kisii Senator has however received criticism from his bitter opponents who often cite his age to rule him out of the race.
Speaking on Sunday, November 28, during a fundraiser at Etanda PAG in Kitutu Chache North, Arati told Senator Sam Ongeri to retire from politics over his advanced age.
Despite the criticism, the Senator insisted that he will not bow down to pressure from his bitter rivals stating that he is in the race for governor solely for the love of his county and concern for its destiny and the fate of its people.
“And that is why I am still in the struggle and will remain in it to the end. It should be clear that I am not in this for the love of office or for pursuit after personal glory or in order to achieve some personal goal,” Ongeri said.
