Mombasa Republican Council Dismisses Hassan Joho's Team Secession Push

The Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) has dismissed renewed calls for secession of the coast region from Kenya by a section of leaders led by Mombasa governor Ali Joho Hassan and his Kilifi counterpart Amason Kingi.

Speaking to the press on Friday, the former secessionist group's Spokesperson Rashid Mraja said the leaders pushing for separation were only pursuing their selfish interests and not that of coast residents.

“If at all they were honest people, they should have come out and joined us when MRC started. These are the same people who fought us and told us that we wanted to stir chaos in the region,” Mraja said.

He wondered: “Why did they have to wait until it is politically convenient for them?”

In a media briefing on Friday, Joho's team vowed to push for the secession of the region from the main land (Kenya), saying current and past regimes have deliberately sidelined the region as far as development and sharing of the national cake is concerned.

“The journey to realise secession for the coastal people has just began,” Joho following meeting at his office in Mombasa. “This is just but the beginning of a consultative process that will involve abroad network of people to be able to realise our dream.”

“We understand that there will be challenges, but what we know for sure is that whatever the challenges we will get where we want to be and we will realise our dream,” Joho said.

“We are not going to use any illegal means. If anyone tries to link us with any group, that won’t work at all,” Joho added.

MRC, who abandoned their secession quest a few years ago, questioned why Joho and the other leaders declined to support MRC in their push, leading to the outlawing of their group in 2012 by then Security Minister late Prof George Saitoti.

“Coastal people will not accept to secede as far as the political destiny of this nation is concerned. We, if need be, shall follow legal means and we want to challenge the political leaders seeking that path to go to court and battle it out in courtrooms,” said Mraja.