Kalonzo left out of Uhuru-Ruto political alliance

Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto on Thursday appeared to be forging a new political front without Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka.

In a meeting with 90 MPs at Sagret Hotel in Nairobi, the two resolved to work together and start negotiations for a pre-election or post-election coalition. The meeting was preceded by another attended by the two leaders and their close allies.

Mr Kenyatta was with Mr Kiraitu Murungi, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri, Mr Eugene Wamalwa and Mr Wilfred Ombui, while Mr Ruto was accompanied by Mr Chirau Mwakwere, Mr Robert Monda, Mr Aden Duale and Mr Ekwe Ethuro. They had earlier met at Palacina Hotel.

Mr Musyoka did not attend Thursday’s meeting but his ally, Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama, who was also missing, said that the VP was tied up in Cabinet.

During the morning meeting, Mr Ruto and his team are said to have asked Mr Kenyatta to put his side of the alliance under a single political entity to enable more structured negotiations. The two teams are also said to have agreed to tackle parliamentary business together.

Sources said that it was agreed that while Mr Ruto and his allies had United Republican Party, Mr Kenyatta’s side was fragmented into different parties. Mr Kenyatta was asked not to pick Kanu or PNU due to their historical ties.

“There is a feeling that Mr Musyoka is deliberately not censuring Wiper secretary-general Mutula Kilonzo. It was therefore decided that we will negotiate with him like we will be doing with others outside our alliance,” said an MP who attended the meeting but was unwilling to be identified. (READ: Minister, MPs plot to censure Mutula)

Housing minister Soita Shitanda, who heads the New Ford Kenya, confirmed that the meeting also resolved to hold a retreat in the next two weeks to draw up modalities for picking a presidential candidate.

“Most MPs felt the matter should be dealt with sooner rather than later so we agreed to go for a retreat to discuss it,” he stated.

He added: “Most MPs felt that if indeed Mutula is not speaking for Kalonzo, why hasn’t the VP publicly censured him? Some MPs also complained bitterly about Mr Muthama’s utterances during the Machakos rally.”

Censure ‘waste of time’

Mr Kenyatta, Mr Ruto and their allies, however, decided to drop the censure motion against Mr Kilonzo terming it a “waste of time” and one that would give him undue publicity.

Mr Kilonzo has incessantly argued that Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto cannot contest the presidency after being charged by the ICC with crimes against humanity. But the two have said that the Constitution allows them to contest unless all avenues of appeals are exhausted. (READ: ODM faults Mutula censure plot)

It also emerged that MPs want the G7 alliance to take a formal structure, with the suggestion that they form a top organ that will be made up of the party leaders. The alliance should also pick a whip who will deal with parliamentary agenda and other issues outside the House.

The MPs have also formed a five-member committee comprising MPs Abdikadir Mohamed, Isaac Ruto, Peter Munya, Amina Abdalla and Mr Ethuro to lead the group’s parliamentary agenda.

The MPs allied to the G7 alliance also resolved to marshal support and have the period for the enactment of Bills on land and devolution extended and supported the extension of the February 28 deadline.

Among the issues identified are the relationship between county assemblies and the central government and the maximum acreage of land one can own and by when one should have disposed of excess land.

“We need to extend the time needed for the enactment of the Bills and for this we need a two-thirds majority,” said Mandera Central MP Abdikadir Mohammed.