Wavinya: "Jail Me. I Signed Illegal Gazette Notice"

Governor Accuses MCAs of Demanding Sh 300,000 Bribe to Approve Municipal Boards Members

By Martin Masai

What began as a disagreement over appointments to Machakos Municipal Boards has now erupted into a full-blown political and legal confrontation threatening to tear apart the fragile relationship between Governor Wavinya Ndeti and members of the County Assembly who once stood firmly in her corner.
In a dramatic public outburst at Kathemboni during the launch of the SHOFCO Community Centre, an enraged Wavinya accused MCAs of demanding bribes to approve her nominees to the Municipal Boards.
Pointing directly at some MCAs, among them Majority Leader Nicholas Nzioka, the governor claimed the assembly members had demanded Sh 300,000 each before passing the nominees.
“300,000 times 60 MCAs is Sh 18 million. Where would I get that money?” posed the visibly furious governor before supporters.
But it was her next remarks that sent shockwaves across Machakos political circles.
In a rare public admission, Wavinya openly acknowledged signing the falsified controversial gazette notice that has since landed her administration in court.

The Notice implied that the nominees had been approved by the County Assembly of Machakos

“Yes, I did it. Come and jail me for it,” she declared defiantly.
“I did it to save Sh 1.8 billion for the people of Machakos to fund activities in Machakos, Mavoko and Tala/Kangundo municipalities.”
The governor further admitted she was fully aware legal proceedings had already been initiated against the gazettement. “They(MCAs) have now taken me to court and it does not matter”. She continued: “Yes, I did it. Come and jail me,” she repeated.
The remarks now place the governor at the center of an escalating controversy surrounding the irregular gazettement of three Municipal Board members — a process that had already been questioned after the County Assembly distanced itself from the appointments, insisting the nominees were never vetted or approved by plenary as required by law.
Last week, The Anchor exclusively reported that the gazettement process was under scrutiny after claims emerged that the appointments bypassed mandatory Assembly approval procedures. https://theanchormedia.org/2026/05/16/storm-as-wavinya-gazettes-board-members-without-assembly-vote/
Now, fresh details indicate the fallout may be far deeper than initially thought.
A senior County Assembly official confirmed to The Anchor that the Assembly successfully obtained court orders stopping the swearing-in and assumption of office of the disputed board members.
“Yes, we obtained court orders last week on Wednesday, 20th May, stopping the swearing-in or assumption of office of the illegitimately gazetted Municipal Boards members,” the official said.
The official further disclosed that investigations into records at the Government Printer allegedly established that the governor personally signed the application used to publish the gazette notice.
“We also gathered from Government Printer that the governor actually signed the application to gazette the names herself personally,” the official claimed.
“Meaning the entire process is marred with illegality and malpractice.”
The Assembly source further warned that the dispute could jeopardize the release of a critical Ksh 1.8 billion conditional grant linked to municipal development programmes.
“The World Bank cannot release the Ksh 1.8 billion conditional grant without evidence of Assembly plenary Hansard records. This is a mandatory requirement,” the official added.
The political fallout has intensified following circulation of a video clip in which the governor appeared to directly accuse MCAs of demanding kickbacks while simultaneously admitting authorship of the disputed gazettement communication reportedly sent to the Government Printer.
The matter is now before court.
What once looked like a functioning political alliance between the governor and a majority of MCAs is rapidly collapsing into open hostility, with accusations of bribery, abuse of office, procedural fraud, and institutional sabotage now dominating Machakos politics.
Behind the fierce public exchanges lies a deeper struggle for control of county power structures, access to development funds, and political survival ahead of a looming general election.
And with both sides now digging in publicly and legally, the Municipal Boards saga may only be the beginning of a much larger political war inside Machakos County Assembly.