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Azimio principals, former President Uhuru Kenyatta, Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka, yesterday warned the coalitions’ senators against internal wars.

The three were represented by Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni at a senators’ breakfast meeting called to forestall a fallout in the coalition.

During the meeting, the leaders warned the opposition lawmakers to stop wrangling over “small issues” and instead forge unity of purpose in the Senate.

A senator who attended the meeting but did not want to be named told Peopled Daily that the Azimio luminaries were concerned about the unity of the coalition.

“They are not happy at all with what has been happening and told us to stop the squabbles. They told us to unite and stop fights over petty issues,” said the Senator.

In the meeting held at the Jaramogi Oginga Odinga Foundation premises in  Nairobi, the senators agreed to plan for a parliamentary group retreat where they would iron out their differences.

Group retreat

The retreat, to be held in two weeks’ time, aims to find a lasting solution to the problems that have bedeviled the Senate’s minority side.

“We agreed that we have a parliamentary group retreat of senators and the leaders in two weeks’ time. We will discuss details about the specific date and venue. Once the date and the venue are set, it will be made public,” said the Senator.

The meeting was attended by all the Azimio senators led by minority leader Stewart Madzayo (Kilifi), his deputy Enoch Wambua (Kitui), Minority whip Fatuma Dullo (Isiolo) and her deputy Ledama ole Kina (Narok).

Madzayo said they met the leaders to brief them on their work in the Senate.

But he, Wambua, Dullo and Kina denied that there were divisions among Azimio senators.

“We met the leaders to share tea and update them on our work in the senate as Azimio,” said Madzayo.

Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna confirmed that the Senators agreed to have a retreat to iron out any differences.

“We agreed that the breakfast meeting was not enough for the Senators to air their issues. We agree to have a retreat where we will be able to speak freely,” said Sifuna.

According to Sifuna, both Wambua and Ole Kina (Narok) apologised to the members for any acts of “omission or commission”.

Divisions emerged last week after the Senate amended the composition of the Parliamentary Service Commission (PSC) where Dullo had submitted her name as a nominee to National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula, only to be replaced by Nyamira Senator Okong’o Omogeni.

Irked, the Jubilee wing of the coalition called a press conference and threatened to leave the coalition.

On Monday, the senators, at Raila’s and Kalonzo’s prompting, called a press conference to declare that there were no divisions in the coalition.

“We are united and there is no division among us. Any communication at the Senate touching on the minority side will come from me,” said Madzayo.

The leaders also dismissed allegations that a section of the Azimio senators had hatched a plot to pass a vote of no confidence in Dullo following her differences with Omogeni, especially on the allocation of committee slots on the representation to PSC.