Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu who does not touch alcohol has faced opposition in his alcohol reforms with bar owners, alcohols dealers and top leadership.
But the unrelenting governor has taken his fight to another level. This time, Waititu popularly known as Baba Yao is dealing directly with alcoholics in his county, claiming that uncontrolled drinking has left many people either dead or reduced to zombies.
It has emerged that drug addicts in Kiambu county are in the governor’s payroll and are being paid Sh400 daily to do manual jobs like clearing bushes and trenches as well as collecting garbage.
Kiambu County spends Sh2 million daily to pay 5,000 rehabilitated alcoholics, over Sh70,000 daily and Sh500,000 a week to fuel vehicles used in the fight against illicit brews. In six months’ time, Kiambu County alcohol reforms will have consumed Sh300 million.
Unimpressed by the move, local leaders are accusing him of spending too much money and time on alcohol rehabilitation at the expense of development in the county.
Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria criticised Waititu for giving recovering drug addicts Sh400 fearing they could easily relapse, sentiments which were echoed by Kiambu Women Rep Gathoni Wa Muchoba who claimed that the project was not achieving much because the addicts end up using the Sh400 daily wage to buy alcohol.
“Give equal attention to matters affecting Kiambu people and stop spending too much time fighting illicit brews,” Kuria said recently.
But Waititu who believes in his alcohol reforms style advised those against it to start their own initiatives.
“This programme is meant for the public good and it is not going to stop. Those fighting it have selfish interests. Those leaders castigating me over the programme should come up with their own projects and leave mine alone,”
“The money we are using to rehabilitate these addicts is the money we collect in form of taxes and thus it belongs to them. No leader has been asked to contribute towards the programme,” he added.
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