Me zinks both Mutua and Kivutha are okay.

I would go with Mutua's approach though: start with water. This is the most basic need for now.

I think it's not fair for us to point at either Mutua or Kivutha and say they're doing the wrong thing. Both processing plants and water connection are needed. In fact, the fact that we have so many needs competing for the little funds at disposal at county level is a sure indicator that our country is still far behind and that our devolution experiment is working despite the initial scepticism.

There will be lots of new stuff to be done especially for counties that were marginalised or are in drylands for even the next 30 years.

The biggest problem here is our lack of appreciation of what makes Makueni tick. ZERO CORRUPTION.

Makueni govt has approached poverty reduction in two strategies. Boost household income and provide safety nets for the vulnerable.

Almost every household has a few mango and orange trees. The brokers have been having a field day exploiting these poor farmers. Now there is a ready buyer offering fair prices. Household earnings from mangoes have skyrocketed. Brokers used to buy @3/- per fruit.

They have a new slogan in Kikamba that every home and some milk. (O nyumba na kalia). And again the county govt is offering a ready market. Makueni fresh. Muranga has been trying to set their milk processing plant but it will put the governor on a collision course with our monarch family.

Why were KCC, KMC, KPCU successful ventures until the Moi era crooks laid their hands on them ? Because government can actually run highly efficient organizations.

The late Gachagua tried to fix the mess with coffee prices in Nyeri and the cartels came out fighting with all they got. Had he succeeded, Nyeri would have been the first success story of devolution.

Once again, Jubilee people understand government to be the place you go to enrich yourself. You can't view Kivutha Kibwana with such lenses. That is why Makueni looks surreal to you. You must be wondering how he will recover his campaign money. How he will get his cut if he pays farmers so much for their mangoes. The truth is he won't. I know its difficult to believe but not everyone wants to be a billionaire arap singh style.

Prof has not just done Mangoes and Milk alone(which are fine by the way) as its being put here by some, he actually started with basics. HEALTH. ROADS. The roads may not be tarmac, but they are passable. He is doing very well by any standard. On water, he is part of the initiative to build the mega Ukambani dam in partnership with central govt.

Prof is doing just fine. Wetu in Nyeri on the other side, pity

I like his approach to on the milk plant. Kikima dairy co-op is running the plant. He's collaborating with KENHA to build bridges across the county. On health, let him experiment on that it doesnt hurt to try. The rest of the country can learn from Makueni but its sustainability may overstretch the budget.

Noble ideas but approach.

Tarmac the roads not earth roads, that is something the nyumba kuni welfare does, provide piped water, don't do business, unless he is sure he will govern for his lifetime.

The government both local and national should provide proper infrastructure, I mean the romans were building proper roads thousands of years ago, the romans back then were piping/channeling water to their people back then, and that was a couple of thousand years back, surely we can do better.

lets not rejoice in mediocrity in the name of starting from somewhere.