Are Two Women Going To Parliament To Replace A Man And A Woman?

According to the late Kipkalya Kones’ second wife, Lily Kones, one of the things to prove that the late minister for roads was indeed a very brave person was the fact that he married a second wife barely within one year of marrying his first wife.

Impeccable sources have informed this blogger that wife number three was on the way for the Kones family and only the cruel hand of death stopped that from happening.

Lily Kones caused prolonged laughter when she told this to mourners on Saturday and halfway through her speech many were convinced that she would easily be the next legislator representing her late husband’s Bomet seat.

But that was before the first wife Beatrice Kones spoke. She was even more convincing and was promptly sanctioned on the spot by another speaker to take over the Bomet seat and shortly after Prime Minister and ODM party leader, Raila Odinga appeared to bless the decision.

What emerged from the Kones funeral on Saturday was that if ever there was a serious Kenyan political family then it has to be the Kones family. Both wives are interested in their late husband’s Bomet seat. Not to mention on of his son’s who instead of going back to complete his studies abroad wanted to run for the seat. It is still not clear whether the impassioned pleas of his mother and relatives will dissuade him.

There is bound to be a little more dust and controversy kicked up before the ODM candidate for the Bomet by-election is settled but there is no doubt that Mrs Betarice Kones, widow of the late minister for Roads is the most likely candidate to take up the Bomet baton.

Meanwhile in Sotik the feeling amongst many is that constituents should take a woman to the august house to replace the departed Lorna Laboso. Water Minister Charity Ngilu was the first to make the request when she made the controversial speech at Lorna’s funeral in Sotik which worked up the crowd so much so that they shouted down Justice Minister Martha Karua who happened to be the next speaker after Ngilu. Read Kumekucha's detailed account of the incident.

It will be a great idea to have at least 50 more women in the 10^th parliament although one additional one is much better than none at all. Analysts believe that the sympathy vote in both cases makes the chances of this happening much higher.

According to various sources, including the Prime Minister himself, the financial situation of the Kones family is precarious and they will need help from the government as well as well wishers to pay off debts and keep things on track. It is claimed that the later Minister was a believer in serving the people rather than grabbing and this is the reason why he was wealthy as some of his colleagues who served in former President Moi’s government.

Kones funeral was attended by President Mwai Kibaki and there is no doubt that everybody had been briefed to steer clear of the rather sensitive so called amnesty-for-post-election-offenders debate. Still there were loud jeers and a little resistance from the crowds when the President finally stood up to speak. However this quickly petered off and the duly elected president was able to do the very rare thing of making a speech in the heart of Kalenjin Rift Valley.