Kieni Member of Parliament, Kanini Kega has recounted how his wife saved him after he ran broke, following the 2007 General Election.
In an interview on KTN NEWS on Friday, April 29, the Jubilee Director of Elections disclosed that he had difficulty explaining to his wife that he misused their income to finance the campaigns.
Kega explained that he did not consult his spouse prior to spending the money drawn from their business. The MP lost the polls after garnering only 206 votes.
He divulged that his wife stood by him even as she took up the responsibility of fending for their young family.
"In 2007, I went to contest again because I had money as I felt it was time to vie. I was the youngest at that time. What is interesting is that the little money I had from the business was all spent.
"After the campaigns, I was totally broke. The only remedy was that I was married and my wife had a job. My wife paid for everything. I had absolutely nothing," he stated.
From his experience, Kega advised young politicians to involve their spouses in their political decisions to avoid making such blunders.
"I went to campaign without informing her and that is a very big challenge for politicians. Before contesting for any seat, you must ensure that there is agreement back at home.
"Our family was young then and it was a moment where we had entered into a mortgage and we were paying it in bits. After joining the politics, we faced challenges in our business," he disclosed.
He also claimed that he only managed 206 votes in the 2007 polls due to the fact that him and two other candidates shared the name Mathenge, which confused voters.
Kega explained after the 2007 defeat, he changed his name from James Mathenge to Kanini Kega - a nickname he was given by his constituents.
Despite the challenges, Kega was elected as the Kieni Legislator in 2013 and was re-elected in 2017.
