A fiery clash has erupted between Kitui County Assembly Speaker Hon. Kelvin Kinengo Katisya and Wiper Party Leader Dr. Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka—after Kinengo publicly denied ever being educated through Kalonzo’s help, only for a resurfaced documentary to tell a completely different story.
What began as an emotional attempt to assert independence and rewrite his political journey has now sparked outrage, confusion, and accusations of betrayal. In a high-octane interview aired on Mutongoi TV with journalist Erastus Kithuku, Speaker Kinengo dismissed claims that Kalonzo Musyoka had played a key role in financing his education, instead choosing to credit his late mother—a bar waitress—for struggling single-handedly to see him through school.
“I only received bursaries when Kalonzo was MP for Mwingi North,” Kinengo stated firmly. “I want those peddling lies that he paid my school fees to stop. My late mother worked as a bar waitress and sacrificed everything for my education. No one—dead or alive—should dare take her credit.”
He further revealed that he joined Wiper Democratic Movement in 2012 as a volunteer while at the University of Nairobi, without having personally met the party leader at the time. Their eventual meeting came in 2015, when both were enrolled in Master’s programs in Law at UoN. Kinengo, then serving as student president, said it was fellow student and now Kibwezi West MP Hon. Mwengi Mutuse who surprised him by revealing that the former Vice President was looking for him.
According to Kinengo, it was at the university’s parking lot that he was formally introduced to Kalonzo, who would later request him to join his campaign team as a personal assistant. The Speaker said he accepted the role, and after graduation in 2016, began working closely with Kalonzo.
But that closeness, according to Kinengo, has now soured.
“I appreciate him and respect him,” he said during the televised interview, “but he should also respect me. He should stop mudslinging my name in public and telling people that I have backstabbed him.”
Kinengo claimed that Kalonzo has been undermining him ever since he expressed interest in becoming Speaker of Kitui County Assembly. He further alleged that the Wiper leader did not support his bid for the speakership and is now behind efforts to politically frustrate him—including a recent show-cause letter issued by the party’s disciplinary committee accusing him of engaging in activities associated with another political party.
But just when the Speaker thought he had taken control of the narrative, a 2016 Kalonzo Musyoka Foundation documentary has re-emerged—raising serious questions about his integrity and honesty.
In the documentary, aired and published on October 18, 2016, Kinengo is captured giving a heartfelt testimony of how the Kalonzo Musyoka Foundation had been instrumental in financing his secondary and university education when his family could not.
“When I finished my Primary Education in 2004, I was to join Mang’u High School but because of financial challenges, I was not able to,” a younger Kinengo is seen stating on record. “So the foundation took that responsibility of financing my education.”
He goes on to recount how he scored an A plain in secondary school, secured admission to the University of Nairobi, and pursued a Bachelor of Laws degree from 2010 to 2014 before graduating in 2015. According to his own words in the footage, he later secured a scholarship to pursue his Master’s in Law.
The footage paints a picture that directly contradicts the Speaker’s recent claims on Mutongoi TV, sparking backlash from within the Wiper camp and among political observers who are now accusing Kinengo of dishonesty and selective memory.
“How can someone deny public help they once acknowledged so proudly?” one Wiper insider told Channel 15 News. “You can differ with Kalonzo politically, yes—but rewriting history to suit your ambitions is betrayal.”
The contradiction also casts doubt on Kinengo’s claim that his relationship with Kalonzo has been strictly professional. In his own words, the foundation—established in 2005, the same year he joined secondary school—was his lifeline when all else had failed.
Critics now say the Speaker may be attempting to disassociate from Kalonzo Musyoka for political expediency, especially amid speculation that Kinengo could be eyeing a bigger role beyond Kitui County Assembly—and possibly aligning himself with rival forces ahead of the 2027 elections.
Kinengo’s defenders argue he has every right to chart his own course and stand on the strength of his hard work, having risen from a humble background to serve as legal adviser to former Makueni Governor Prof. Kivutha Kibwana before clinching the speaker’s seat. But even among his supporters, the question remains: why deny the very support that helped build his foundation?
Whether this was an innocent omission, a moment of emotional outburst, or a deliberate attempt to sever ties with Kalonzo Musyoka, the damage may already be done. The resurfaced documentary is damning, and unless Kinengo addresses it directly, the narrative of him biting the hand that fed him will likely stick.
As the political temperature in Kitui continues to rise, one thing is certain—this is no longer just a party dispute. It’s now a battle for truth, memory, and legacy
