Jubilee split over Balala bid for Mombasa governor seat

Talks by a section of Jubilee supporters in Mombasa County that they would back Tourism Cabinet Secretary Najib Balala to contest the governor’s seat in the 2017 elections have stirred a storm within the coalition.

The pro-Balala group and those backing businessman Suleiman Shahbal differed in public during an Iftar dinner at Lohana Hall in Mombasa on Saturday, causing county JAP chairman Ali Mwatsahu to storm out of the function.

Trouble started early in the evening when Mr Mwatsahu, a Balala diehard, indicated that he would endorse the CS during his speech at the dinner sponsored by Mvita Parliamentary aspirant Mohamed Thenge for Warembo na Uhuru, a women lobby group campaigning for President Uhuru Kenyatta’s re-election next year.

Earlier, when talking to reporters shortly before the meeting, Mr Mwatsahu had said: “I will suggest that we as Jubilee support Balala for the governor’s seat.”

And when he took to the flood during the meeting, Mr Mwatsahu said: “If we say that everyone should go for the nomination, our coalition is likely to lose the governor’s seat. I propose that we should sit at a table and back one candidates to wrestle the opposition.”

MEN MEET AT THE BALLOT

But his sentiments drew the ire of those present, among them Mr Shahbaal, viewed as Jubilee’s front-runner in challenging Governor Hassan Joho.

Mr Shahbal challenged anyone interested in the seat to come out “and meet me in the ballot because men meet there”.

“If Mr Balala and any other person want to challenge me, they are welcome. I am ready for anybody and I challenge them to meet me in the ballot box, not in public rallies,” he said.

The National Alliance (TNA) county chairman Matano Chengo too told off Mr Mwatsahu, and dismissed the consensus calls.

“Consensus is not democracy. These seats are free for anyone. Everybody should go to the nomination and whoever wins will be backed by us all,” he said.

Don’t try to bring your directives here,” he said.

But the lobby’s county Organising Secretary Binti Mariam Omar who heard the comment urged Mr Mwatsahu to drop the endorsement as it would “spoil the whole agenda of the Iftar”.

When he stood to speak, Mr Mwatsahu was tactical but obviously spoke for Mr Balala’s endorsement although he did not mention him by name.

“If we say that everyone should go for the nomination, our coalition is likely to lose the governor seat. I propose that we should sit at a round table and come up with consensus to back one candidate to wrestle the opposition,” said Mr Mwatsahu.

Mr Mwatsahu went on to say that if Jubilee made similar mistakes to those made in 2013, the seat will again go to the opposition.