Coast leaders divided over calls to form political party

Coast leaders are divided over calls to form a Coast-based political party.

While some leaders believe the move to forge a united front is timely, others say it will fail because leaders and communities are divided.

The idea, dubbed the Dabaso Declaration, was mooted by leaders during the thanksgiving party for Kilifi North MP Gideon Mung’aro in Dabaso.

Former Cabinet minister Chirau Mwakwere, nominated Senator Agnes Zani (ODM) and Kinango MP Gonzi Rai (TNA) are against the idea of a regional party.

Dr Zani is opposed to the idea because of her ambition to contest the ODM secretary-general’s position in the February elections.

The Kinango MP is urging proponents of the Dabaso Declaration not to rush the idea. He said previous attempts to forge a united front failed because of divisions among coast leaders.

“I have been in this game for over 20 years and I am cautioning my colleagues to go slow because the formation of a strong political party is no child’s play. It’s a long-term goal and not an overnight thing,” he said at a burial ceremony in Matumbi village last weekend.

MOVING FORWARD

But Mr Mung’aro, the Minority Chief Whip in the National Assembly, says he will soldier on with the idea.

“We failed to bring our people together but that does not mean that we should not try again to form the fourth voting bloc in the country,” he said, adding that the region voted as a bloc for Narc (2002) and twice for ODM (2007 and 2013).

Mr Mung’aro said “opposition from two or three leaders” would not deter the rest who are the majority.

According to him, the region has been misused for long by politicians from other regions during election time.

“This is our defining moment and nobody will stop us from seeking views from our voters. We will go to the grassroots, we will talk to current and past leaders and we will involve our professionals to bring our people together for the sake of development,” he said.

While Africa Nazarene University lecturer Professor Morris Mbondenyi welcomes the idea, he said the proponents should first form a movement that will unite the six counties in coast region.

“A movement has a more open-door policy and informal basis for thrashing out differences among communities than a party, which operates within stringent rules. If the proponents are sincere and genuine, I am ready to formulate the ways and means of establishing a movement which can later be turned into a political party when the time comes,” he said.

Members of the public who post comments on a popular Coast blog had varied views.

“With all due respect, I completely disagree with the direction they are taking – this path will not take the Coast agenda forward,” reads a comment posted on the Wapwani forum.

QUESTIONS RAISED

Mr John Msafari, Alpha Group administrative director in Nairobi, wants to know if the goal of the one party is to empower the Coast people or it is for political empowerment of a few.

He said the region has had its fair share of political stalwarts from the late Ronald Ngala, Muinga Chokwe, Robert Matano, Dawson Mwanyumba and Jackson Shako who were strong members in government but nothing came out of it.

In a game, according to Mbarak Abdalla Kumbo, there are many formulas to win and he strongly believes that in Coast, it will start with uniting the people before forming a political vehicle ahead of 2017.

“Kenya is tribal and I don’t see us making it to the presidency any time soon. We should also not forget that politics is just one of the concerns of coast people. We should first discuss ways of solving other problems such as education, healthcare and poverty,” reads his comments. 

REGIONAL PARTIES

Ms Naomi Cidi, the former Kenya Airports Authority deputy managing director, says it cannot be business as usual after backing the losing horse in two consecutive elections (2007 and 2013).

Breaking down region by region, she notes the Gikuyu, Embu and Meru communities have The National Alliave (TNA); the Rift Valley communities have United Republic Part (URP) ; the Luo and Kisii Nyanza have Orange Democratic Movemrnt (ODM) ; the Luhya have the Ford parties and the Kambas have Wiper.

“The people of Coast have no political vehicle and no unifying political leader,” she said. She also wondered whey the region should continue to be a political fishing ground for the others.