Wiper: We Have A Replacement For Sonko

Mike Sonko | PHOTO COURTESY

If current contestant Mike Mbuvi Sonko is barred from running for governor of Mombasa on the grounds that he is unfit to hold public office, the Wiper Democratic Party would field another candidate. 

Mr Sonko informed locals in the Mapembeni district on Friday that if the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) prevents him from contesting, he will be replaced.

“They constantly threaten us with legal action. Don’t worry, we’ve got a backup plan, but we’ll make sure Mombasa gets new leadership.” 

Mr Sonko made the comments while accusing Noordin Haji, the Director of Public Prosecutions, and Chief Justice Martha Koome of intervening in his court matters.

Unless proven guilty, Mr Sonko claims that the Constitution empowers him to run for any political office wherever. He claimed that because he has invested and was born in Mombasa, he is qualified to run in the Coast region.

“The CJ and the DPP’s statements are reckless and threatening to me. They are not exempt from the law. I have the right to self-defense under the law. Mr Sonko stated,

“I respect the DPP and the CJ, but I have the right to criticize them.”

Those convicted of criminal offenses cannot hold or seek for public office, Ms Koome said in an interview with Spice FM on Friday, awaiting the outcome of any appeal filed to dispute their conviction.

“You remain impeached until that impeachment is lifted. When you are sentenced, you are sentenced until the sentence is set aside,” she said.