Standing tall between Balala and Taib

POLITICALLY, she is a queen in Mvita politics or at least that is how the area's political pundits paint her. And as the clock ticks away to the 27th December general elections, she is literally eating into the strongholds of not only the financially endowed, but the national politically well connected men.

With her fame on the rise, the way to her home could leave one feeling cheated. It is a dirty and dark street of Burnly village of Majengo which leads to the home of Mama Afiya Mkuwewe Rama.

The narrow streets are doubling as the sewage lanes, with odor and sweat coming from food vendors fighting for space in the atmosphere greeting any visitor who includes university graduates and high school kids going to seek help from this woman.

That left aside, she’s known for her aggressiveness in logging a fierce fight for what she believes is right and even the financially endowed well know her as she has rubbed them the wrong way and in most cases emerges the victor.

Talk of Mama Afiya Mkuwewa Rama and parliamentary in Mombasa and anyone with a keen eye on the region’s politics including the immediate former Mvita legislator Najib Balala can attest to my introduction. She is among the Muslim women in the region who have rolled up their sleeves and standing tall between men and indeed she is a top cream in the Mvita politics.

In her own words, as the clocks ticks away to the December elections, they (other Mvita candidates) keep on throwing overtures by her side, but guess what, the more she keeps them guessing and what’s more, the more her value grows. The more their resolve to keep wooing her doubles!

However an interview with us, Mama Rama as fondly referred by her acquaintances, is a simple lady living in a single room house in what is referred as a bed sitter.

Nevertheless staying in a single room and walking a humble life she wants to know the problems that face the Mvita people and she bites finger to show the might in Mvita constituency’s politics in her own words ‘fire’.

“I live a humble life because I want to understand the problems that our people are in not because I can’t stay in the mansions; no I want to know my people well. I know what it takes to get this seat and believe you me I am out to capture it though most media houses have been putting us in the dark. Next year we will meet and I buy you a cup of tea reminding you these words.” says the determined lady.

For starters Mvita constituency perceived to be the mother of battles in the coast region where politics is competed by Najib Balala member of the ODM pentagon who has so far gotten the direct nomination of the party, Taib Ali Taib who enjoys the support of not only Kanu but also PNU and Mama Rama the only lady in the race is in for it through the ODM-K.

During the Liberal Democratic Party grass root election this is the lady who gave the mighty Najib Balala a run for his money, the battle that whose ultimate winner was seen to be her, only that the party’s formalization committee did not announce the result to save Balala’s face from shame.

But who is this lady? She is a 37 year old mother of four kids who married in earlier 1990s but divorced in 2002 in after she differed with her husband over whet she terms as principals. However the husband, who has so far married another wife, is still a good friend and always supports her in her political treks.

Prior to her marriage Mama Afiya Rama was brought up in a single mother family after her Dad (Rama Omar) and mother (Time Rama) divorced while she was a minor.

After her father who was then a KPA employee left her mother the then little Afiya’s life was not the same again as her mother could not provide adequately to the family of eight children with Afiya being the 3rd born.

She says that they often found themselves in and out of school due to lack of school fees as the mother was a hawker in Kisumu where she says they grew up.

“My dad and Mom separated when we were so young; my school life at Bara Ogwal primary school based at Kisumu rural district was through much struggle from my mother. However I completed and I moved to Muslim secondary in Mombasa and cleared my fourth form.”

The 37 year old, Mama Afiya says she then proceeded to Superior Commercial College where she completed her secretarial course, but she attests that her education was a struggle.

She then got married in 1990’s and bore four children, Rama, Khadija, Sahale and Ali.

For this Muslim adherent single parenthood would not deter her ambition to capture the Mvita constituency parliamentary seat come December elections. She also believes that her religion as well is not a challenge either as she quotes several verses in the Quran to support her quest.

She says she was always a political activist, but the idea to enter into the muddy life of politics was born after she served as Balala’s main campaigner in the run up to 2002 elections.

Mama Afiya who looked determined and focused on her goal says that she moved from house to house to campaign for Balala and made sure he won, only for him to betray them by not standing for the poor and instead dinning with the rich.

She narrates that after her few months in the Mvita constituency education committee she realized that Balala was not advocating the change the Mvita people wanted and she said quit from the committee. And since then she has been a thorn in Balala’s political flesh.

It is during the LDP grass root election that she came out fighting Balala and emerged a winner only for the election to be shelved to date.

Owing to Balala’s strong ties with Raila Odinga, Afiya says the LDP election harmonization committee could not announce her as the winner, and the issue was taken before Raila himself where he told then to go and iron out the election.

However up to date she notes, Balala has never summoned enough guts to face her or calling her over the issue till the merging of ODM.

"We have been called severally by local FM stations with him (Balala) where he always storms out saying he cannot sit and deliberate Mvita problems with me. He always retorts that he can only sit with my master and not me."

She says that she moved to ODM-K after pressure and threats from supporters of Balala become unbearable and she says that in ODM-K she is a happy woman politician as the party embraces women issue.

In ODM she says she was locked out intentionally when Balala was given the direct nomination for being a member of the Pentagon.

“Lakini mwambieni kuvishwa pete sio kuolewa. He could have gotten the direct nomination to lock me out of ODM but I am geared to meet him at the final ballot where a replica of the LDP elections will prevail again.”

Mvita constituency has so far been perceived as a two horse race between the former Mombasa mayors- Balala and Taib, but as we came to realize the women aspirants who have been shunned out from the media are galvanizing their strength ready to face the two.

Her parting shot; “I think I will pull a surprise and whoever thinks that I will be a push over let him or her think twice.”