Ruto allies to Raila: Uhuru will use and dump you 

Deputy President William Ruto’s allies in Mt Kenya region believe the First Family is working behind the scenes to make ODM leader Raila Odinga a weak President should he win the election on August 9.

They claim the aim is to manipulate the former Prime Minister and later kick him out of power should he fail to do their bidding.

“The Odinga presidency is being designed as a family affair. The Kenyattas have been in State House for 25 years and they cannot imagine that we are going into an election without one of their own strategically placed to take over in the near future,” said Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua. 

“Their power sharing formula is not in favour of the Jubilee Party; there are ongoing negotiations to pick a member of the Kenyatta family as Mr Odinga’s running mate,” he added.

The President’s cousin, Mr Kung’u Muigai, dismissed the theory, saying “the President is pursuing the common good of the country and not the family”.

“We have a duty as leaders to show our people the best way forward and warn them when we see them being guided into a ditch,” he said.

Clinging to power

Mr Gachagua claimed there was a plan to nominate one of the President’s children to a powerful position.

“We must stop this desperate scheme that seeks to give us a weak president so as to continue being ruled by the same family,” Kandara MP Alice Wahome said. 

Nyandarua Woman Rep Faith Gitau offered: “The President should retire and become a statesman, instead of clinging to power in a manner that might destabilise our politics and national security.”

Gatanga MP Nduati Ngugi, however, said Azimio la Umoja was confident of victory, saying the President had dispatched his allies to convince rebellious Mt Kenya politicians to come back home.

“We are talking to them and we want to move towards the President’s guided succession route as a united Mt Kenya,” he said. 

Murang’a Senator Irungu Kang’ata said there was no way Mt Kenya residents would commit themselves to more “colonisation” by the three big families — the Kenyattas, the Mois and the Odingas.

Lame duck president

“For the Kenyatta family, it will be risky in thinking that Mr Odinga will be a lame duck president since vacating presidents’ powers diminish once they leave office while that of the incoming strengthens on assuming office,” he said.

Dr Kang’ata said the Kenyatta family will soon realise its folly in trying to believe that “he who is going down the ladder can hold hands with he that is going up”. 

He spoke of a post-election fallout in Azimio la Umoja.

Dr Kang’ata said it cannot be lost out to keen observers that Mr Odinga believes the Kenyattas have played a huge role in stopping his family from ascending to power in the historical contests.

“Mr Odinga and his people retain a historical grievance, if their continued citing of past stolen elections is anything to go by. Best chance the president and his family had was if they employed the submarine style, where you organise the succession from behind the scene so as to retain the ability to change course if the plan fails,” he said.

“The President has not left anything to speculation and has made it very clear that he wants to continue managing the presidency from his retirement to a point he has already promised to retain half of the current cabinet. This leaves Mr Odinga in a dilemma: Will he be his own man should he win the elections? That’s the challenge.”

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