This archive report was first published on 3 July 2019.
As Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho prepares to leave office after his second term, he is secretly working on a line-up of all political seats in the port city ahead of the 2022 general elections. The plan, which has been kept under wraps, aims to ensure that only loyal individuals are elected to key positions.
According to sources close to the plan, Likoni MP Mishi Mboko is among those under consideration by Joho as his preferred successor. Mboko is viewed as loyal and the thinking is that such a person will not betray the governor's interests. Joho also calculates that with Mboko at the helm of the county, he would still have a say on county affairs from outside.
Initially, Joho had thought of supporting the county assembly speaker Aharub Khatri to take over from him but has since changed his mind after he discovered the speaker could become a man of his own. The speaker had embarrassed Joho a few months ago by pushing MCAs to impeach some of his executives against his advice.
Several of Joho's advisers do not see-eye-to-eye with the speaker whom they accuse of arrogance. As for his deputy William Kingi, insiders in Joho's camp view him as someone who cannot be trusted with their interests. Besides, they dismiss him as lacking financial muscle to oil a high-profile campaign.
The governor is also reportedly not comfortable with Mohamed Faki retaining the Mombasa senator seat. He wants Changamwe MP Omar Mwinyi to shelve his governor ambition and instead contest for senator.
For the MPs' seats, the governor would want to see Mohamed Ali of Nyali kicked out and his place taken over by his cousin Said Abdalla aka Saido. In Kisauni, the governor wants to Rashid Bedzimba to make a comeback. Mbogo has already been politically tamed after the governor's seat was dangled to him.
Other key positions that Joho is reportedly eyeing include the Mvita seat, which he wants to be taken over by Mohamed Soud aka Machele. The MP Abdulswamad Nassir is being sidelined after he was made to believe he would inherit the governor's seat.
On CS Najib Balala and Suleiman Shahbal, who have separately embraced Joho, sources say, the governor does not have any roadmap for them except, he needs them to rally behind his 2022 presidential ambition.
