East African Legislative Assembly MP Suleiman Shahbal has dismissed President William Ruto’s advice that he should leave politics and concentrate on business, declaring that he will contest the Mombasa governorship in the 2027 General Election.
Shahbal said he respected Ruto as President but would not follow his suggestion, arguing that his decision to remain in politics was driven by his desire to use his abilities to serve the people.
“President William Ruto is the President of the Republic of Kenya, and I respect him. But I do not agree with him on one thing: that I should leave politics and continue with business,” he said.
The businessman and former Mombasa gubernatorial candidate said politics and business had different goals, with political leadership requiring a person to put public needs before personal interests.
“When you seek political office, you are expected to put the interests of the public ahead of your own. I want to use the abilities and opportunities God has given me to benefit our people,” he said.
Shahbal said he was determined to make another attempt at the Mombasa governor seat despite pulling out of the 2022 contest after political talks paved the way for Abdulswamad Nassir to receive the ODM ticket.
“This time, only God and the people of Mombasa can stop me. We are in this race until the final day, and while others are preparing, we are preparing too,” he said.
He also took issue with political parties for making decisions behind closed doors on candidates, saying aspirants should not have to depend entirely on party leaders to determine their political future.
“The days when people would sit in boardrooms and decide who should run and who should not are over. This time, we are organised and ready,” he said.
Shahbal further alleged that some Members of the County Assembly who backed his 2022 campaign faced threats of losing their ODM tickets.
He said the experience had pushed his team to prepare for the next election without depending on the party for its political plans.
“We have prepared ourselves, so keep your ticket. The politics of intimidating people and forcing them out of parties is part of the reason political parties are losing leaders,” he said.
He described his split with ODM as a “friendly divorce”, saying he had already been informed that the party would not give him its ticket for the 2027 contest.
“We have had a friendly divorce with ODM. It has been made clear to us that we will not get the ODM ticket. But take this to the bank, whether we get the ODM ticket or not, we are prepared, and we will be on the ballot,” he said.
The EALA legislator, however, kept his political plans under wraps when asked which party would sponsor his bid, saying only: “We have our party. Wait a bit.”
Shahbal also defended the Buxton project, saying its development started in 2018 and should therefore not be treated as a project launched for the 2027 election campaign.