By TOM JUMA

Other than Gideon Moi of KANU, none of the top presidential hopefuls has shown any loyalty to a political party. In fact, all of Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Moses Wetangula and Musalia Mudavadi have been “life members” of more than three political parties in their not so long political lvives.

But Deputy President William Ruto arguably holds the trophy of entry-stay-and-leave political outfits.

In just the last ten years, the DP has been a member of five political parties. He has been in  Kanu, Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), United Democratic Movement (UDM), United Republic Party (URP), Jubilee Party and United Democratic Alliance (UDA).

The condescending political traits he exhibits started during his political youth under President Daniel Moi, his mentor and KANU boss then.

He has carried these attributes with him and is shrewdly applying them in present-day politics.

His record on living and abiding by party rules reads like some movie script.

Between 2007 and 2013, the DP rocked the ODM boat from within and clashed with party leader Raila Odinga for the better part of President Mwai Kibaki’s final term in office. He issued demands and threats to the party leadership, constantly causing confusion and anxiety.

He intended to take over ODM and use it to run for the presidency in 2013, a scheme Raila and his brigade sensed in advance and foiled.

A frustrated Ruto squabbled with the party’s Nation Executive Council before defiantly pulling out and embarking on a vigorous smear and propaganda campaign against the then extremely popular outfit. He was part of the team that established ODM and held it together in one piece, but he wanted to leave the orange party in pieces.

He demonised the ODM leader in Rift Valley and radicalised the youth against him, claiming he was behind the elusive Mau evictions that targeted “our people”. He would later form UDM, alongside his former YK 92 associate Cyrus Jirongo and other leaders from the Rift Valley.

But even in here, things were not rosy as he thought. Barely months after forming the party, Ruto picked up a fight with its National Executive Council over what he claimed was a plan to lock him out of the presidential race.

He fought UDM chairman General John Koech on many occasions, accusing him of being an ODM sympathiser and even hatched a plot to kick him out. Ruto also picked up another fight with Jirongo after learning the former Lugari MP was eyeing the presidential seat on the UDM ticket.

Further, the then Eldoret North MP charged his troops against the ODM team, claiming the Raila-led outfit had infiltrated UDM to scuttle its operation and frustrate his presidential bid.

But Gen Koech and other Kalenjin leaders stood their ground and resisted Ruto’s attempt to dictate to the party leadership what should be done.

Koech got massive support from Rift Valley political bigwigs led by Mzee Moi, then Tinderet MP Henry Kosgey, ex-minister Nicholas Biwott and Gideon Moi.

Frustrated again, the impatient Ruto ditched UDM and formed URP. In the new party, his word was law.

It is worth noting that while Ruto was relentlessly fighting to stabilise UDM, he was still a member of ODM, the same thing he is doing today.

He appears to have revived this old condescending political script to rock the Jubilee Party boat and run away. But as fate may have it, it appears the gods of vexation are still by his side and history is about to repeat itself.

After the 2017 polls, Ruto hatched elaborate plans to take control of the Jubilee Party in preparation for his 2022 presidential bid.

However, to his surprise, President Uhuru Kenyatta warded off his efforts by making fundamental changes to the party’s National Management Committee (NMC), kicking out Ruto’s allies who were planning the takeover.

Feeling frustrated, Ruto, like he did with ODM and UDM in 2011, picked up a fight with Jubilee party officials, accusing them of using uncouth means to undermine his presidential ambitions.

He used his vocal allies to undermine the party’s leadership and to criticise government projects for cheap publicity.

But Uhuru quietly unleashed his political nukes that broke the camel’s back, boxing the DP’s troops into a cold corner of submission.

They have now regrouped under the nascent UDA, a party whose history is rhyming with that of UDM.

Things have started falling apart already. There are emerging wrangles within the leadership of the newly-refurbished party.

A petition challenging the party’s ownership has been filed at the Registrar of Political Parties’ office by former UDA chairman Mohamed Abdi Noor. Noor accuses Ruto’s allies of illegally taking over the party and has asked the tribunal to quash the changes made to UDA leadership and reinstate him as the bonafide chairman.

This could just be the beginning of another impending rumble in Ruto’s unending series of frustrations in the hands of political party owners.

Tom Juma is a regular commentator on social, economic and political affairs.