Former State House Chief of Staff Nzioka Waita has recalled how he defied his former boss, retired President Uhuru Kenyatta who had advised him against vying for an elective post in the 2022 General Election.
Waita who served as State House Chief of Staff for seven years decided to vie for the Machakos gubernatorial post in the 2022 General Election, against Uhuru's advice. During the elections, he came second amassing 129,181 votes against incumbent Machakos governor Wavinya Ndeti who got 226,609 votes.
Speaking on the Engage’ podium on Thursday, August 10, the former aide revealed that he approached Uhuru a year before the elections to seek his blessing before joining politics.
However, the former head of state wondered whether Waita knew how difficult the world of politics is and whether he was ready for any outcome.
"In October 2021, I gathered the courage and told my boss that I was interested in acquiring a seat. He asked whether I was looking for a job in the next government, which I declined and said that I wanted to vie for an elective office," Waita said.
"Usually he was multitasking, so he stopped what he was doing and looked at me and started laughing. He said; 'You think this is like the job you have here? You know politics really?"
After considering Waita's request, Uhuru informed him to seek further opinion from three other people including his parents, wife and Wiper's Kalonzo Musyoka.
"My mum wondered why I wanted to do it and after explaining, she gave me the greenlight. My wife was also in shock but it took some convincing words for her to agree. I went to him (Kalonzo) and found a way of bringing the subject. Without thinking about it, he said that when he gets in office he will give me a position so I need to stay out of it," Nzioka said.
He gathered up the courage to ask the Wiper leader to reconsider his statement, to which he said he would think about it.
The former Machakos gubernatorial aspirant was left confused with the remarks and was almost considering his alternative option of joining the private sector.
However, a phone call to his mentor, whom he did not name, reassured him of his position as he agreed to be Waita's campaign leader.
Confident that he had made the right decision, Waita approached Uhuru with the decision and a resignation letter.
"When tendering my resignation, Uhuru asked whether I was sure about the decision or whether we should burn the document. I told him that I had made up my mind," he reiterated.
The politician ran his campaign under Chama Cha Uzalendo (CCU), which later joined the Azimio coalition. He revealed that during the campaign, he visited 40 wards and attended 6 meetings a day, amounting to 480 meetings in total.
While narrating the journey, he revealed how he faced opposition from insiders at Azimio who preferred Ndeti as the coalition's candidate, as the majority of his rallies were disrupted by a section of youths.
“I remember how once I was told Raila would come to Machakos and endorse my competitor. I asked, Good gracious! After all these meetings, begging people for money to support my campaigns, these guys are going to destroy me in one day? I said No and prayed."
Despite the problems, he remained confident that he made the right decision to vie for the gubernatorial position.
“I got 130,000 votes, six times the capacity of Nyayo Stadium, from every corner of Machakos. People who said I don’t speak Kikamba, had big ears or didn’t care if I was born and bred in Nairobi, what they saw is the substance that I had in my head, they listened and could see a future. I feel bad that I let them down, but I don’t feel bad that I tried - Just try!” he said.
