Mukhisa Kituyi reveals why he quit United Opposition, joined Sifuna-led Linda Mwananchi

Kituyi, who had been designated spokesperson and head of the United Opposition secretariat, said his efforts to establish a joint secretariat collapsed after constituent parties opted to continue operating from their individual party headquarters.

Speaking during Citizen TV’s JKLive, Kituyi said he had even identified potential office space and moved furniture from his former political party offices in preparation for setting up the secretariat.

“When I was designated spokesperson of the United Opposition I set about to try establish a secretariat. I looked around at different properties to set up offices, I even brought some of the furniture I used to have in my political party offices and availed for the purpose,” he said.

“But all the constituent parties of the United Opposition preferred to run their businesses at their party secretariats. So this effort failed.”

Kituyi said the failure to establish a common operational structure reflected a broader problem within the coalition, which he accused of not matching its political rhetoric with practical cooperation.

“We were not walking the talk,” he said, adding that some facilities where deposits had already been paid had to be abandoned.

Despite the setbacks, Kituyi said he remained committed to the opposition's objective of fielding a single presidential candidate against President William Ruto in the 2027 General Election.

He, however, said the coalition had struggled to agree on a common political programme, with some leaders more enthusiastic than others about developing a comprehensive covenant with voters.

Kituyi singled out former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i, People's Liberation Party leader Martha Karua and Siaya Governor James Orengo as leaders who had been supportive of efforts to develop such an agenda.

He said the coalition had also struggled to issue joint positions, with individual leaders and smaller groups often preferring to hold separate press conferences rather than agree on common statements.

Against that backdrop, Kituyi said he became interested in the Linda Mwananchi movement, which he described as a “fresh gust of air” that could provide the basis for developing a broader political agenda.

“I decided on my own that the Linda Mwananchi team is interesting; they are a fresh gust of air, and maybe around them can be developed a comprehensive agenda and content that can give them a fair chance in competition with the others about who should become the candidate for president,” he said.

Kituyi said Sifuna's appeal among younger voters was a major factor in his decision to join the movement, arguing that the Nairobi senator had tapped into a constituency that opposition politicians had largely failed to mobilise.

“I think Sifuna is the man who can take on this mantle. He has excited a major section of the electorate that nobody had been able to open up: the younger voters,” Kituyi said.

He described the younger electorate as a largely non-tribal political constituency whose support could become significant in the 2027 presidential contest.

“That’s a constituency we cannot wish away,” he said, while acknowledging that it was not yet clear whether Sifuna's appeal among younger voters could be transferred to another presidential candidate.

Kituyi also gave Sifuna a personal endorsement, describing him as energetic and consistent and saying he had not seen anything in the senator's history that could expose him to political compromise.

“I think any single presidential candidate from the existing aspirants in the opposition will beat Ruto. Sifuna has the energy, consistency, and integrity; he has not been besmirched by any scandal,” he said.

He, however, clarified that he would support whoever the United Opposition eventually agrees on as its presidential candidate, even as he declared Sifuna his preferred choice at the moment.

“I would support whoever the United Opposition picks as their preferred candidate, and I will work with them. As of now, my preferred candidate is Sifuna; however, I will support whichever candidate is agreed upon as the candidate of the opposition,” Kituyi said.

He also distanced himself from any attempt to dictate how Sifuna should respond to the opposition's eventual candidate-selection process.

“How Sifuna reacts to another candidate is up to Sifuna not Kituyi,” he said.