A faction of Akamba Clan Governing Council elders addressing the Media on August 26, 2027. 
By Fredrick Kioko.
A leadership dispute has emerged within the Akamba Clans Governing Council, with a section of elders accusing the council's top leadership of convening meetings without clear agendas and making key decisions unilaterally.
The dissenting group, led by Organizing Secretary Pius Mwaka, raised the concerns during a meeting in Wamunyu, Machakos County, where they questioned the leadership style of council Chairman Boniface Kilonzo.
The elders accused Kilonzo of arbitrarily deciding when council meetings should be held or postponed without adequate consultation with members.
They cited a recent meeting in Kitui involving Public Service Cabinet Secretary Geoffrey Ruku, claiming that members had to persuade the chairman to allow the scheduled engagement to proceed after he allegedly sought to cancel it.
The group maintained that the Akamba Clans Governing Council is a non-political body guided strictly by its constitution and warned against attempts to subject its operations to political influence.
According to the dissenting elders, the council has held three meetings with CS Ruku in Machakos, Makueni and Kitui counties, but has not conducted internal reviews or discussions on the outcomes of those engagements.
They said the failure to review the meetings had raised questions among members, with some suspecting that the engagements could be serving personal interests rather than the collective agenda of the council.
The elders further alleged that Kilonzo had summoned members to another meeting scheduled for September 2 at his home in Kitui, citing the presence of “other visitors” without disclosing the agenda.
In response, the dissenting faction has called for a full council meeting in Machakos on August 31, where they say they will take action if the chairman fails to attend and address their concerns.
The dispute has also fuelled speculation that the chairman could be planning to host Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka during next month's meeting.
However, the dissenting elders insisted that they would not allow political interests to infiltrate the council or permit what they described as micromanagement of its affairs.
Speaking in a phone interview, council chairman Boniface Syengo dismissed the allegations as false, terming them the result of internal infighting involving a minority of leaders.
Syengo said the council is made up of 22 clans, each represented by its own chairman, and claimed that only seven members were opposed to the current leadership.
He added that he had not been informed of the meeting being planned by the dissenting group and noted that he is currently unwell.
The leadership wrangles come as the council continues to engage CS Ruku on strategic development plans for the Ukambani region.
However, the engagements have attracted political attention, with some observers viewing them as part of Ruku's broader efforts to make inroads into the Wiper Party stronghold and mobilise support for President William Ruto ahead of the 2027 General Election.
