Hassan Joho blames his woes on politics of Mombasa port
Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho now says he is proud of his D- grade that some of his rivals have been using to get political mileage.
Mr Joho on Tuesday said he was happy with the grade he got in the Kenya Certificate of Secondary Education (KCSE) exams because he had turned it around into “real success”.
INSPIRATION
He managed the grade in the exams he sat at Serani Secondary School in 1993 in Mombasa County.
Addressing the press in his office, the governor urged the youth, especially those who did not perform well in KCSE exams, to get inspired from his successes.
“Some people perform poorly in exams because of poverty but should not be discouraged since that is not the end of the road,” he said.
“I got a D-minus but I have since made tremendous progress."
The Directorate of Criminal Investigations is investigating Mr Joho over claims that he forged his KCSE papers to secure admission to university.
He had been summoned to appear before the detectives on Tuesday morning but he wrote back, explaining that he had other planned engagements today.
SUMMONS
He said he would honour the summons to appear before criminal investigators in Mombasa on Wednesday, adding that he has nothing to hide and exuded confidence that he would emerge victorious.
The summons, he claimed, was a well calculated move by President Kenyatta and the Jubilee administration to silence him.
He showed journalists a report he claimed had already been prepared to be taken to Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko so that he could be charged in court.
“I will always be ready (to be investigated)...I am standing by the truth...nothing but the truth,” the ODM deputy party leader said.
But asked if he forged his papers, Mr Joho said he did not want to pre-empt his response to the detectives on Wednesday.
POLITICS
“Why would I want to forge my own certificate and for the same year,” he had said earlier.
Mr Joho also said security personnel should not allow themselves to be misused to settle political scores.
He questioned why an assistant inspector-general of police was dispatched to deliver his summons on Monday when serious criminal cases in the country are not given similar treatment.
“They even went to Tononoka nursery school and Tom Mboya Primary looking for my records,” Mr Joho said, adding that reports indicated that the Ministry of Health was also investigating how he acquired his birth certificate.
The governor, who has been engaged in a spat with President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto over development in the coast region, said he was currently being investigated by virtually all state organs.
KRA PROBE
The Kenya Revenue Authority is looking into his bank accounts and those of his family businesses.
“I am ready to be punished politically. I will remain steadfast in pushing for the interests of my people. No one will stop us,” Mr Joho said.
Mr Joho said he would continue asking hard questions about the Jubilee administration's performance and urged Kenyans to respond to his tribulations by sending President Kenyatta home in the August elections.
“The President had warned he will teach me a lesson and fell me. I am praying to God that Kenyans show him in the August 8 polls that Kenya belongs to all of us,” he said.
He questioned why a dry port envisaged under the Vision 2030 projects was being transferred from Voi to Naivasha.
SGR LOANS
He also said he is unhappy with the use of the Kenya Ports Authority to guarantee billions of shillings for the building of the standard gauge railway instead of the money coming from the Treasury.
“The move is meant to kill the coast economy and shatter the locals’ future,” he said and further decried land injustices in the region.
Naming ODM leader Raila Odinga as his role model, saying Mr Odinga had suffered a lot for Kenyans to enjoy their rights, Mr Joho said, “Even if I die now there are so many other Johos.”
“I will continue fighting for the interests of not only coast residents but Kenyans at large,” he said.
