Amason Kingi locked out of new Coast coalition as 5 parties join up

Five Coast-based parties have decided to exclude Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi as they forge ahead with their plan to form a coalition ahead of the 2022 General Election.

The parties have written to the Registrar of Political Parties Anne Nderitu to reserve a name, United Progressive Front, an alliance set to be unveiled in January 2022.

Leaders in the unity bid yesterday told the Nation that Mr Kingi’s Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) would not be part of the coalition charged with championing the interests of Coast people.

The new coalition brings together Communist Party of Kenya (CPK), Shirikisho Party, Kadu Asili, Umoja Summit Party of Kenya (USPK) and the Republican Congress Party.

The parties are currently engaged in several consultative meetings to iron out outstanding issues on their working relationship.

Two meetings are scheduled in the coming week in Malindi and Kwale.

Once an agreement is reached, the alliance will be launched before its leaders embark on campaigns to popularise it.

Political movement

"We have written to the RPP to reserve a name for the coalition. We have been working towards this and we will not stop until we achieve what we want for the Coast people," CPK National Vice Chairman Booker Ngesa Omole said as he confirmed Mr Kingi’s outfit had been left out.

The governor, who was pushing for a Coast-based political movement, was fired by the Orange Democratic Movement for alleged “poor leadership”.

But his plans to form an alliance with the five parties collapsed after he allegedly rushed to register PAA, a name that had been proposed for the new coalition.

Mr Omole said the formation of the political outfit was unstoppable as every effort is being made to ensure that the same is launched by January.

"We have adopted the Voi declaration that was signed by the six Coast parties. Any party that would want to join us must adopt the declaration because it is the document that carries the aspirations of the Coastal people," he said.

Asked if Mr Kingi had approached them, Mr Omole responded "Yes the party (PAA) has approached us but it must first support and adopt the Voi declaration.”

Shirikisho Party of Kenya Secretary-General Adam Mbeto termed the launch of the coalition in January as “New Year gift to Coast people.

Agreement

The fringe parties, he said, had reached an agreement on most of the issues.

"We are almost there. Parties are in the final stages of discussion that also include preparation of the coalition agreement, which we will deposit with the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties," he said.

He said current talks are centred around agreement on how the various parties will field candidates for different elective seats to avoid fallout.

"We are at an advanced stage. We are having a meeting today to deliberate on certain issues which are still very contentious," Mr Mbeto said.

The parties have joined hands to battle it out with the Orange ODM, Jubilee and United Democratic Alliance (UDA) for the various elective seats.

The parties aim to zone the Coast and allocate counties to coalition partners with the aim of locking out their rivals.

Mr Kingi said PAA is ready to work with any political party that shares ideology with the Coastal people who have for long blindly supported other political outfits.

“The political realignment is happening everywhere including Western, Mount Kenya, North Eastern, and other regions.  It should not be an issue when the Coast region is also planning its own political future,” he added.

Coast Elected Leaders Forum spokesperson Lucas Maitha said PAA is not fielding a presidential candidate in the coming election because they know that chances of PAA leader clinching the seat are slim.  

“The party has stated that it is ready to work with ODM leader Raila Odinga or even Deputy President William Ruto to address the challenges facing the Coast region. We shall talk and negotiate with whoever will approach us. If Mr Odinga or Dr Ruto approach us, we will present issues that we would want to be addressed,” said Mr Maitha.

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