Mudavadi’s new alliance unites strange bedfellows

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi’s yesterday’s much-hyped ‘Earthquake’ event gave birth to an alliance of strange bedfellows.
Mudavadi and Deputy President William Ruto have been on each other’s throats since the last election, with the DP constantly making disparaging remarks against the ANC boss in public rallies.

Ruto has not only been chiding Mudavadi of running a “tribal party.”

“My competitors are retreating to regional parties because they have no development agenda for the country. I urge voters to reject them at the ballot,” Ruto said in Vihiga in December.

Ruto described talks by Orange leader Raila Odinga, Mudavadi, Wiper’s Kalonzo Musyoka, Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula (Ford Kenya) and his Baringo counterpart Gideon Moi of Kanu as “inconsequential” as far as his candidature was concerned.

The leaders had been holding unity talks as they seek to cobble an alliance, and field one presidential candidate.

Their move was seen as a deliberate effort to tame Ruto to ensure he does not succeed his boss, President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“There are so many threats. You can see how men have ganged up but I have told them they can continue to gang up but we have God and we will face off with you because we will not accept that Kenya will be a country of minding the welfare of leaders and how they will share and how they will get positions,” he said.

Cash donations

Mudavadi on the other hand is on record saying the source of Ruto’s cash donations was questionable and should be investigated by among other authorities the Kenya Revenue Authority.

“Safaricom is the richest company in Kenya and their profit records show that no other company is above them. Safaricom has a foundation, which it uses to run Corporate Social Responsibility activities. (And so) if Safaricom is the richest company in the country, how then is it possible that one person can give out money every weekend and everywhere that is way above what the company spends on CSR activities,” Mudavadi said.

But yesterday, he took an about-turn, saying the real thieves were their competitors, noting that: “These are the real thieves in the country. These cartels don’t even pay taxes. They are the worst burden our country has had to carry. We must reject their political project.”

Mudavadi has also been dismissive of Ruto’s bottom-up economic model, saying Kenya need solutions and not models.

“There are several models being pushed around, but that is not the point. People want to know how we will pay our debts, how we will lower taxes. If there is corruption, the only way is to have the corrupt taken to court. There is no model in handling our challenges,” Mudavadi.

Besides the alliance, yesterday’s event led to the collapse of the OKA alliance despite a spirited effort by key partners last week that all was well.
Mudavadi and Kalonzo swore that none of them had met Ruto or ODM leader Raila Odinga for a coalition pact.

Wetangula and Gideon also denied reports of a split within the formation over allegations that some principals were in talks with other contenders.
The principals said the alliance was intact and the process of identifying a flag bearer was at an advanced stage.

They said the alliance had scheduled a retreat next month to strike a deal on the election lineup.

“We wish to re-assure the public that OKA is united, strong and focused on its political mission,” they said in a statement read by former Lugari MP and UDP party leader Cyrus Jirongo on Wednesday.

From his choices of words, his body language with the DP and how Tanga Tanga team were treated, Mudavadi, who has been accused of working secretly with Ruto, did not disguise that he had fallen out with Kalonzo and Gideon, who have been leaning towards UhuRaila.

Ripe age

“I Musalia Mudavadi, have refused to board the boat of lies. I was never trained to be a liar. I will not begin lying to Kenyans at my ripe age. Like Abraham Lincoln, I solemnly believe that “the fact is, the truth is your truest friend, no matter what the circumstances are,” so I am not boarding that train of lies, said Mudavadi.

The swiftness in which Mudavadi’s unhappy co-principals through, Fredrick Okango, the Secretary Political Affairs in Kanu, released a press statement explaining that they had left the venue because “it is time to end the nasty political games” since their co-principal invited people who they felt are unsafe for them’.

“We (OKA) have today walked out of Mudavadi’s ‘earthquake’ meeting. Our principals Hon Kalonzo Musyoka and Hon Gideon Moi, out of respect, honoured his invitation as a co-principal to attend the Bomas event and congratulated him for being nominated by his party to go and look for more friends,” Okango said.

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