National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula’s Ford Kenya party has rejected calls to dissolve and join President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA).

Instead, the party has declared that it will field candidates in the upcoming by-elections, which UDA, as well as parties aligned to ousted Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, will be fielding ahead of the 2027 elections.

At a meeting over the weekend, which Wetang’ula chaired, the party insisted that it will not fold on the grounds that it has been in existence since the return of multi-party politics. It stated that it is prepared to have representatives and leaders in areas that were left vacant by Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi’s Amani National Congress (ANC), which folded and joined UDA.

The Ford Kenya party made the decision during a high-level meeting of the party’s Management Committee and National Executive Committee at Sentrim Elementaita, Naivasha, that was attended by Ford Kenya elected governors, MPs, MCAs and top officials of the party.

Speaking yesterday, Ford Kenya Secretary General and Tongaren MP John Chikati dismissed the calls to have the party fold, insisting that the identity and legacy cannot be traded for short-term political relevance.

Although he maintained that Ford Kenya is fully in the Kenya Kwanza Alliance, hestated that there is no time at which the party made a declaration to merge with UDA.

 “The thought of dissolution is not there. We are focused on building Ford Kenya’s capacity as an independent outfit,” Chikati said, adding that the party is preparing to flex its political muscle in upcoming by-elections as it is planning to field candidates in all vacant seats, including Malava, Ugunja and Banissa.

Already, he revealed, a special committee has been tasked to identify the party strongholds ahead of 2027, particularly in regions like

Turkana, Nandi, Vihiga and Kilifi and West Pokot.

To attract the Gen Zs, he announced that the party will be rebranding and will have a new logo, colours and slogan. Further, he said that the party has also adopted a Youth Charter and plans to establish chapters in universities and colleges across the country.

“We want to really rebrand completely and make sure we are in consistency with the youth. The perception out there is that Ford Kenya is an old party, and that is why we want to give it a new image,” he said.

The announcement comes as Ford Kenya’s current cooperation agreement with UDA is set to expire in 2027. The decision of the party is a big blow to the UDA party and Ruto, who sources say is keen to have all affiliate parties allied to UDA fold and join Kenya Kwanza in his bid to solidify his base ahead of the 2027 General election.