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They do not come that big. That is how Prof Makau Mutua, the spokesman for Azimio leader Raila Odinga’s presidential campaign, described Narc Kenya boss Martha Karua’s decision to join their coalition.

Karua, who has been keeping her cards close to her chest with the journey to the August polls fast running to decision time, yesterday endorsed Raila for State House in the August 9 General Election.

In what was packaged as a re-union of the Second Liberation reform voices and a major boost for the Raila’s presidential campaign, Karua said she had no intention of joining Kenya Kwanza Alliance of Deputy President William Ruto, which has also been courting her.

A former Cabinet minister and presidential aspirant who has in the past differed with Raila and President Uhuru Kenyatta – both of whom she ran against in 2012 elections – Karua is among leaders who have featured in opinion polls as possible running mates for Raila and Ruto, especially from the populous Mt Kenya region that the leading contenders have been aggressively courting.

“I have chosen to be with Raila without struggle. We have been in the trenches together and from today we shall be going out to popularise Azimio la Umoja coalition and his 10-point agenda,” she said at Nairobi’s Serena Hotel.

Raila and Karua held a one-on-one meeting at the hotel where they signed an agreement between Azimio and Narc Kenya.

 “I am here to confirm that from now onwards, Narc Kenya and I are supporting the Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga. This is without any equivocation,” Karua told a press conference at the hotel.

“She is a resolute and decisive leader. She brings enthusiasm, energy and democratic credentials to the campaign. They do not come that big,” Prof Mutua told People Daily when contacted on the latest political developments.

“In every campaign there are milestone events that can change its trajectory. Karua’s agreement to join Azimio is a seismic moment likely to change our political landscape,” said the law scholar.

Karua becomes the last of the remaining members of the One Kenya Alliance (OKA) alongside Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka and Kanu chairman Gideon Moi to join Azimio la Umoja.

Other founding OKA members Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetang’ula bolted earlier to join Ruto.

“She was the only significant leader of the country who had not made up her mind. The other side was highly covetous of her but she chose to go for legacy and the history of liberation,” said Makau.

Significant leader

Incidentally, other members of the 1990s reform train notably Raila, Siaya Senator James Orengo, Governors  Kiraitu Murungi (Meru), Anyang’ Nyong’o (Kisumu), Charity Ngilu (Kitui), Kivutha Kibwana (Makueni) and former Cabinet minister Mukhisa Kituyi have all thrown their weight behind Azimio.

Mutua could not disguise the fact that Azimio campaign expects her to play a critical role in seducing Mt Kenya voters.

“Of course she is a significant leader in Mt Kenya and we have a job to do there. We believe she will not only helps us build bridges to the mountain but actually move mountains for the campaign,” Makau said.

Speaking earlier when she made her Azimio move, Karua said Kenya needs leaders who have a demonstrated a track record of being selfless and who have placed the country’s interests above theirs.

“People who can fulfill promises because it is easy to make promises during a campaign but we know that without integrity in leadership, without safeguarding public resources, all those promises will amount to nothing,” she said.

Acknowledging the shortcomings on both sides of the political divide, Karua said neither Azimio nor Kenya Kwanza Alliance was “clean” as the two formations have people who may have looted in the past and who do not believe in the rule of law.

But she defended her decision to join Raila, noting that they had been in the trenches during the Second Liberation and fight for multiparty democracy.

“We have  come a long way in the struggle and fight for liberation in this country, the Second Liberation and fight for the Constitution. And when we have had disagreements, we have been able to lay them on the table and overcome them in the interest of the people of Kenya,” she held.

Welcoming her to the Azimio movement, Raila said the journey to liberate Kenyans from economic turmoil was unstoppable, warning that there was still a lot to be done to achieve what the people of Kenya desire, which is the Kenyan dream, as coined by the founding fathers of the nation.

Economic turmoil

“And we agreed that the time has come again for us to come together in this final phase. So, I feel very proud this afternoon to receive Martha to the side of our divide, I do not  think she had any other  choice because the difference between this side and the other side, is like day and night, black and white,” Raila said in clear reference to the Kenya Kwanza Alliance.

“The people who were together in the struggle are on this side. I don’t think there’s any of them on the other side. The revolutionaries are on our side and we are going to merge together and Martha Karua is going to get a number soonest,” Raila added.

The former premier said Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza Alliance comprised individuals who were defending the system that liberators were fighting against.

Karua has maintained that she will run for the Kirinyaga governorship and is widely expected to re-energise the women’s base in Azimio and play a significant role in government if Raila wins the presidency. She had previously made it clear that she was not ready to work with Ruto, who she blames for some of the country’s problems.

Widely expected

Asked what promises may have been made to the Iron Lady of Kenyan politics who has christen herself “ Martha Wa Kenya,” Mutua said the Nark Kenya leader didn’t demand any favours or post.

“Martha Karua has worked for a society that respects the rule of law, democracy and gives women their space. She has lived that life of the struggle without asking for anything. She did not demand anything from Azimio. She is a selfless and servant leader who wants the country to move forward. If she gets anything for that, it will be the icing on the cake,” said Mutua.

Earlier, Narc Kenya Secretary-General Michael Orwa said the party’s National Executive Committee had sanctioned the move to join Azimio.

“We have now made a choice because it is the credentials of a presidential aspirant that matter. For those who understand the history of our country, even in its recent past, you would appreciate the ideological convergence between our own party social democratic ideal and the legacy of Raila,” Orwa said, adding that Narc Kenya ascribes to those ideals, the history of struggle, liberation and standing for social justice and inclusivity.

Karua’s party was not at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre on March 12 when her former colleagues in the One OKA formally joined Azimio.