Kilome Residents Protest Sacking of Agriculture CEC Elizabeth Muli, Demand Reinstatement

By Andrew Mbuva.

Residents of Kilome Sub-County in Makueni County on Friday staged peaceful demonstrations at Kasikeu Market demanding the reinstatement of former County Executive Committee Member (CECM) for Agriculture, Elizabeth Muli.

The protesters accused Governor Mutula Kilonzo Jr. of unfairly dismissing Muli and called on the county leadership to explain the circumstances surrounding her removal from office.

Led by local leaders and residents, the demonstrators questioned the rationale behind recruiting Muli from the Kenya Medical Supplies Authority (KEMSA) only to dismiss her a few months later.

The residents argued that the decision had left Muli without a job despite her distinguished career in the ICT sector, where she previously served as a director at KEMSA.

Speaking during the protest, community representative Willy Malile said the governor must come clean on the actual grounds that led to Muli’s dismissal.

Malile noted that Muli had served as the Agriculture CECM for only four months, insisting that allegations linking her to the ongoing mango-related controversies in the county were unfounded.

According to him, the ongoing investigations into the management of the Kalamba Mango Processing Plant had not yet been concluded and therefore it was premature to attribute responsibility to the former CEC.

“The governor did not adequately address the real issues at hand. Instead, he chose to protect those directly responsible for the mismanagement at the Kalamba plant by dismissing an innocent person,” Malile said.

He further claimed that members of the county assembly, the Kalamba Plant Board, plant management, and some ward agricultural officers were among those directly implicated in the matter.

The protesters demanded that Muli be reinstated to office until a task force appointed to investigate the mango issues releases its final report.

They also questioned the legal basis used to dismiss the former CEC, noting that neither the County Assembly report nor the task force investigations had recommended her removal from office.

Among the demands issued during the demonstration was that Muli be reinstated within 14 days, failing which the residents threatened to pursue legal and other forms of action.

Residents also used the protest to express broader frustrations over what they described as lack of development in Kilome Sub-County.

One mango farmer said local growers have suffered heavy losses due to lack of markets, with large quantities of mangoes going to waste on farms.

“I planted mangoes hoping to benefit from the market, but they have all rotted in the farm. We hear that mangoes are being sold somewhere, but we do not know where. Nothing seems to be happening and we do not see development,” the farmer said.

The resident also criticized the county government for what he termed as unfulfilled promises to support farmers and improve livelihoods in the area.

Some protesters warned that the dissatisfaction among residents could influence political choices in the next general election, saying Kilome voters may reconsider their support if their concerns remain unaddressed.

They also questioned the utilization of billions of shillings reportedly allocated to the sub-county since Governor Mutula took office four years ago, claiming that there were few visible development projects to show for the funds.

The county government had not issued an immediate response to the protest by the time of publication.