*AN IN-DEPTH EVALUATION OF GOVERNOR Dr.MOHAMED ABDI KUTI'S HUNDRED(100) DAYS IN OFFICE: A TALE OF SAGE LEADERSHIP*

*Preamble*
Dr.Kuti's approach soon as he took the oath of office on the 23rd of August was slightly different from what many would do.He didnt rush himself into taking rash or irrational decisions like some are wont to do. Instead, 'Baba Yao's key decision was to go about uniting the several political factions that had threatened to tear Isiolo asunder following a largely negative electioneering which saw political temperatures reach pitch-high at its peak moment.
He extended an olive branch to his main political nemesis Abdul Bahari in a bid to work together in uniting communities living in wasoland for the benefit of all; a plea which Bahari accepted and was marked by a mighty show of union capped at MCA Fayo's homecoming in Kinna: That was a moment of pride for the people of Waso that such high profile political rivals ditched their political differences and decided to join hands in a bid to work for the people. It was a real crowning moment for the people of Isiolo..
It must be acknowledged that MAK inherited a government that has been deeply averse with corruption and mismanagement to the point that the governor and most of his senior officials are still using personal vehicles for their official business. A state of affairs that has been necessitated by the previous regime's vices.

*Prudent Handling of The Hunger Situation In The County*
Soon as he was sworn into office, the good doctor had his hands full with drought ravaging most parts of the county. The hunger situation seemed untenable due to its gravity with thousands being on the brink of starvation.
The governor set forth in arresting the situation early enough and as the county coffers were empty, he lobbied the national govt, a call which was promptly accepted due to the severity of the situation and thousands of bags with foodstuff enough to last till the end of the drought was distributed across the county, an exercise which he jointly supervised with the devolution secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri. A disaster was mitigated in a timely and efficient way.
The other question was about the hundreds of thousands of livestock belonging to the people  of waso which was scattered everywhere across the northern frontier in search of water and pasture for their livestock until the famine abated. The livestock and their owners,just like their kins back home were in gross danger of perishing from the pangs of the drought,water,despite their sustained efforts was nowhere to be found. This prompted the governor to seek further assistance from the national govt where water bowsers in their droves were dispatched to areas as far as Badhan Rero in Marsabit county. The depth of the situation could be captured in the gratitude of the livestock owners who sent video recordings acknowledging the receipt of the the foodstuff and water. They were immensely grateful to the governor who heard their cry and acted in a timely manner to salvage the impossible situation they had found themselves in.
The governor was accompanied by the local leaders in the exercise who included the area women rep Hon.Rehema, Hon.Hassan Odha(north) and Hon.Abdi Koropu(South).The entourage also included a bevy of MCAs among other high ranking government officials. Such an effective response to disaster has never been witnessed in the area even with the coming of devolution and the people of Waso are pregnant with hope that better things are in the offing under the leadership of H.E Dr. Mohamed Kuti.

*Forensic Audit*
The Isiolo county government is so far the only devolved unit that has set its path in redeeming the nature of executing county govt business by setting forth an independent forensic audit whose objective was to find out how things stood with the county govt. This in part was because of the gross disarray in which the county stood with a lot not adding up when H.E took office. It was to establish the current position of how things stood in all the departments of the county government and while the audit is still ongoing, the findings are disenchanting with high numbers of ghost workers uncovered who absorbed big chunks of the devolved budget annually.
Another sector which was in a total mess was the treasury reporting a staggering debt of more than billion which will be a factor that the governor needs to find a way of handling with utmost priority lest it comes between the implementation of his very ambitious manifesto which he has severally reiterated that it shall be implemented to its letter.

*Health Sector woes*
Soon as he took office, the governor made an impromptu visit to the Isiolo Level 4 hospital in a bid to establish where the general dissatisfaction of the people with the facility was coming from.
It was another shocking discovery  for the good doctor who is ultra passionate about this sector being a medical doctor himself who had at one time served as the facility's head.
The facility had no medicine to dispense to the patients seeking its services despite being funded by the taxpayer for the same.
The dialysis machine- a very pricy equipment which was to ease the burden on the kidney patients who were going to afar destinations seeking the its services and which was one of the glaring blueprints of the Jubilee government was stilled wrapped up as the day it had arrived. The previous regime had failed to put such an important piece of equipment into good use leaving many to suffer as a result.
The wards,hallways,stores and offices were in general sense of neglect perhaps owing to the fact that the employment of the workers within the facility especially the casual ones wasn't carried out according to a merit process. Most were absent when the governor made his impromptu visit.
The compound was filled with litters and the facility was generally not reflective of an institution tasked with handling the bulk of the county health matters including referrals from other regions within the county.
something fast and effective needs to be done about the same and the governor has sprinted to action with the direct appointment of Deputy Governor Dr. Abdi Issa(MD) (another first in Kenya) seen as a personal handling of the crisis while keeping the DGs hands full unlike previous times where the Deputy had no substantive duties and only seen as a handy boy of the reigning governor(Ask Simba Gulleid).

*Establishing a working assembly*
Another hallmark of Kuti's hundred days can be seen in the manner in which he has been able to bring together MCAs who are indeed the closest unit of devolution to the people.
If Doyo's C.A. taught us anything, it is that we cannot have any substantive development taking place in the County with a disjointed and warring assembly.
Despite most of the elected MCAs not being in his camp during the electioneering period, MAK set forth to work with all of them in realising development for the people at the grassroots level and that could only be achieved through a house that stands together and execute its business with a view to set motions and pass bills that can then pave way for reasonable development within the county.
The house has so far not disappointed under the able leadership of hon speaker Hussein Golicha.
Mature debates are already taking centre stage with avid debaters like the freshman and majority leader Fayo taking medals home for introducing important motions to the house. It is the general hope of Isioloans that this trend continues. The onus is now on them  to drive the development agenda home and this can only be achieved through proper cooperation with the executive. MAK has already set out to establish a good working relationship with the house which is a positive move considering the past one was disjointed and lacked order and the only legacy it left,perhaps is the shoe throwing rampage that was televised for the whole nation which was a very low moment for Isiolo.

*CEC selection*
MAK has received wide ranging praise in constituting a cabinet that is professional while considering both regional and ethnic balance.
His dream team has been accepted by all quarters and political factions in Isiolo which is a good thing considering the previous regime's selection was aggravated with court battles which extended well into half the regime's term due to issues of regional balance, gender and selection not done according to the constitutional requirements . The current one has received acceptance from the public at large and should use this factor as a challenge to deliver for the sake of the people that believed in them. In achieving this, they need to steer clear of politics and fulfil their constitutionally laid out mandate in service to the people.

*Public Participation- Another first in Isiolo*
The participation of the people in important governance matters especially at the county level has been achieved in the first hundred days in Isiolo county.
This was ONE HUGE STEP for us considering nothing of the sort has ever happened in our backyard where the general public gives its contribution on important matters before being executed by the government of the day. By and by, this will contribute tremendously to the success rate of the projects which will be implemented by the county governments after factoring in the views of the people who are the end users of such projects anyway. It is the one area in which the previous regime failed resulting to zero success rate of any projects it had under its name - if any. Ultimately this was the missing link in the whole set up.
If this trend is sustained by the county leadership, there is every reason to believe in the deliverance of their mandate.

*Revocation of The 25 year hotel lease*
Another hallmark of Kuti's hundred days was celebrated by the unconditional revocation of the lease which was fraudulently granted to a private contractor by the previous regime.
At the time the lease was issued, there was a public outcry over the deal which was sealed amid unknown circumstances with experts wondering why the county could give away such a cash cow for the county treasury.
The deal was shrouded in mystery and was known to be championed by the now former assembly member representing cherab ward Mr.Hassan Kumpa and the executive headed by the then governor himself.
The revocation will now give the county treasury new lifeline to continue enjoying the revenue accrued from tourist activities in game reserves such as Shaba among others.

*Fast-tracking the completion of KMC abbatoir*
The abbatoir which has been one of the blueprints of Dr.Kuti which he personally initiated while serving as the MP of Isiolo north had been neglected by the previous regime subsequently it has never been commissioned despite the ample funds the regime received from the central treasury and also factoring in the devolved monies that was pilfered instead of investing it in such a promising project which could have created employment for the hundreds of the local youth not forgetting the benefit it has for the local livestock owners whose stock could have had a thriving market locally. If completed, It would have been a channel of value addition for the livestock whose market potential in terms of economic viability has never been competitively evaluated.
The governor made contact with the central government in fast tracking its completion and Kes 300 million has since been set aside for the same by the central tresury. The governor has also committed another kes 120  million which adds up the figure to kes 420 Million, an amount which will be enough to comfortably complete the project which has since stalled. Once completed, the facility will create job opportunities for more than 200 local youth. This also means an indirect employment to a further 10000 local people.
In addition to this, it will open up the Northern frontier's economic potential by creating a thriving livestock market whose end products shall be sold both locally and internationally through export of livestock products. The facility is one of the flagship projects of LAPSSET and vision 2030 whose implementation is already in high gear with the construction of Lamu-Garissa-Isiolo Highway already in the works after the government recently approved kes 63 Billion for the same.
The people of Isiolo must dare to hope this time, good things are shaping up fast and we must fully embrace the impending development 'rapture' that shall hit us like a 'wrecking ball'- for lack of better words to use.

*Conclusion*
MAK being able to achieve the above in just 100 days including others which I haven't captured in this analysis, there is hope that things shall never be the same in Isiolo.
I am seeing a leadership that is able and ready to listen to its subjects. A leadership that makes the people the bosses as it should have always been. One that is ready to give an ear to the people that has given them the opportunity to serve them. The future of Isiolo and its people can only shine brighter going forward. The proverbial light at the end of the tunnel is glimmering bright for all to see. Let's forge towards it and keep our eyes on the prize. Let's support our leaders who have all portrayed a general sense of maturity from the onset by agreeing to work together in achieving results for our people.
Let's give constructive criticism where there is need which will as a result make us a part of the solution and not criticise for the sake of it or for personal discontentment which will only make us part of the problem with no achievements on both ends after all is said and done.

*RATING*
Having put several parameters to use in compiling this analysis and having made wide consultations across board, I hereby give Dr. Mohamed A. Kuti a rating of 8.7 on a scale of ten(10).

*P.S*: The author largely used the former regime as his reference point in the compilation of this analysis.

*This author is an independent analyst*

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