By Robert Nyasato
As the rest of the 47 counties secured their share of the national roads programme, Nyamira County was conspicuously left out.
Not a single kilometre of road, bridge, or culvert has been allocated to any of the four constituencies.
This omission has sparked sharp debate among leaders and residents, given the county’s already fragile road network.
Four of Nyamira’s seven MPs—Jerusha Momanyi (Jubilee), Joash Nyamoko (North Mugirango, UDA), Stephen Mogaka (West Mugirango, Jubilee), and Irene Mayaka (ODM, Nominated)—are aligned with President William Ruto’s administration.
They have been vocal in mobilising support for his 2027 re-election.
With Nyamoko as the only elected UDA MP, the rest now face mounting pressure to explain how the county missed out on this crucial development share.
The remaining MPs—Senator Okongo Omogeni, Clive Gisairo (Kitutu Masaba), and Patrick Osero (Borabu)—aligned with Fred Matiang’i’s camp, have dismissed State House visits as mere political theatre.
They insist that projects are only secured through parliamentary budget processes.
Gisairo, for his part, has defended his prioritisation of completing ongoing stalled projects before seeking new road allocations.
Yet, the exclusion remains a political headache.
Unless the national government intervenes through Kenya Urban Roads Authority (KURA) to at least cover Nyamira and Keroka municipalities, pro-government MPs will struggle to defend their “two-term slogan” amid accusations of failure to deliver.
Roads are more than just infrastructure—they are enablers of equitable development.
A good road network connects farmers to markets, children to schools, and patients to hospitals.
It reduces the cost of doing business, attracts investment, and ensures no region lags behind simply because of poor access.
When a county like Nyamira is left out, it risks widening the gap in national development and undermines the constitutional principle of fairness in resource allocation.
The issue is now likely to dominate campaigns in the forthcoming by-elections in Ekerenyo, Nyansiongo, and Nyamaiya wards.
Meanwhile, top county sons in government, including Solicitor General Shadrack Mose, Chief Whip Silvanus Osoro, and UDA Treasurer Japhet Nyakundi, will also be pressed to account for what went wrong.
According to Nakuru Town West MP Arama, a member of the Roads Committee, the blame lies partly with Nyamira legislators themselves, whom he accuses of failing to follow up to ensure road projects were approved.
Regardless, for Nyamira residents, the bigger question remains: why should their development depend on political loyalty, when the Constitution guarantees equitable growth across all counties?