Kirinyaga Governor Anne Waiguru, on Wednesday, November 27, posed a challenge to President Uhuru Kenyatta during a highly parked meeting at the Bomas of Kenya in Nairobi.
Speaking during the Bomas meeting that was also attended by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and DP William Ruto, the governor challenged the president to ensure that the gender equality provision proposed by the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) was also replicated in the country's highest positions.
The county boss further urged the president to extend the policy to other legislative arms of the government including for the majority and minority leaders of both the National Assembly and the Senate.
"We are very grateful to the committee and especially on the issues to do with gender. We have seen the issue of gender that if a governor is a woman, the deputy governor is a man.
"Your excellency we are asking for the policy to be replicated even in the legislature and Parliament. If the speaker is a man, the deputy should be a woman," stated the governor.
"We are not asking for too much. In this country, over 50% are women. I think it is time this country got to a point of gender equality. We also ask at the top leadership that we ensure that we have gender balance at the top three positions, the president, the deputy president and the prime minister," she continued.
She, however, thanked the BBI team for including the gender clause in the report which, when passed, would potentially see more women rise to top county leadership positions given that there are currently only two women governors and less than 10 women deputies.
"I have been a keen supporter of the handshake and I would like to thank you (Uhuru) and Raila for having put all your ambitions and pride aside so that you can put the nation first and give us a handshake," he continued.
Other leaders who spoke at the event included Senate majority leader Kipchumba Murkomen, Kitui Governor Charity Ngilu and Sabina Chege.
Murkomen was booed after claiming that the speakers chosen to address the audience were skewed as a majority were allied to former premier Raila Odinga.
