A heated clash was witnessed in Kilifi on Monday between Former Gender Cabinet Secretary Aisha Jumwa's supporters and those of Kilifi Governor Gideon Mungaro.
The clash occurred after Aisha Jumwa stormed the popular Chenda Chenda Festival and disrupted its whole agenda.
The Chenda Chenda festival is a cultural festival where tribes come to showcase their culture.
The organizers of the event had already booked the venue and set up the dais, however, Jumwa set up a parallel dais opposite the festival and used that opportunity to hijack high-profile visitors streaming to the event.
Temperatures cooled down after Trade and Industry Cabinet Secretary CS Salim Mvurya arrived. At this point, Aisha Jumwa tried to convince him to join her at her dais.
The CS refused after which the whole situation escalated. According to reports, the brawl was so intense that they ended up dismantling the public address system.
Reacting to the brawl, the Kilifi Governor expressed his disappointment at the trajectory the event had taken. He claimed that the chaos were politically instigated and called on the former CS to wait until 2027 when the opportunity to vie will present itself.
"Whoever you are and whatever position you hold or used to hold in government doesn't matter, let us respect each other and wait for the ballot in 2027." Governor Mungaro said.
Governor Mungaro sent a stern warning to any politician planning to frustrate his leadership.
Other coastal leaders present at the festival accused Aisha Jumwa of neglecting the community when she was a Cabinet Secretary but wants to be recognized after being booted from the cabinet.
Aisha Jumwa and Gideon Mungaro were competitors during the 2022 general elections. They were both vying for the Kilifi Gubernatorial seat. The latter would emerge victorious.
The governor garnered 143,773 votes against Jumwa’s 65,893.
Although she lost the gubernatorial race, Jumwa would later be appointed as a cabinet secretary in President William Ruto's first cabinet.She was however booted when the Head of State purged his government after widespread anti-government protests.
