KANU officials say the party will not be held back by Kalonzo

Pressure is mounting on Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka to join the Azimio la Umoja movement and team up with ODM leader Raila Odinga to face Deputy President William Ruto in the August State House contest.

The Jogoo party-KANU, one of Musyoka’s allies in the One Kenya Alliance (OKA), is the latest to challenge the Wiper leader to make up his mind, with Secretary General Nick Salat faulting him for playing hard to get.

KANU leadership congregated to launch its manifesto ahead of the Azimio movement joint National Delegates Conference (NDC) scheduled for Saturday. 

OKA’s political future dominated the manifesto launch, with Salat pointing at Musyoka as the roadblock to the alliance’s journey to a pact with Azimio la Umoja.

“…hata kama ni cerelac hakuli, sijui tumpatie nini ndiyo akubali…hii mtu tumekaa na yeye ni nini anataka? Nataka tu Chairman, usikae na yeye sana, kama hasikii wachana na yeye twende,” Salat said.

Salat continued to pile pressure on KANU Chairman Gideon Moi to lead the Jogoo party into Azimio if Musyoka does not make up his mind.

“Kama hasikii ya ukweli, wachana na yeye tu, hata kama ni kukaa na yeye na kubaby sit yeye, mpaka saa ngapi? Wacha tu Chairman, we love you, with or without him, twende tu, ni nini unakosa?” He posed.

Moi on his part dismissed Salat's words calling for patience within his party members.

“You know, patience pays, in anything we do, let us go together; sio vizuri uache mtoto mmoja, saa zile unaenda, you must get all of us, so that we move together, that is very important,” Moi said.

Musyoka, who is also eyeing the presidency, has insisted on structured talks between OKA, ODM and Jubilee before any deal can be sealed.

With the coalition’s flagbearer being the sticking issue, Musyoka is pushing Odinga to exit the stage in his favour, even unleashing a secret pact they had signed in 2017 where Odinga promised him the 2022 presidential ticket whether the ODM leader made it to State House or not.

During the Jubilee NDC a fortnight ago, Musyoka indicated that it was not a matter of if but when OKA would team up with Azimio la Umoja, but the mistrust and competing for political interests that led to NASA’s death lingers on.

“But I must give you a promise, that in this journey we are together, but we will have structured dialogue, honest conversation, correcting even historical injustices, and imbalances because building a coalition is not easy, and I propose Mr President you take leadership of that coalition,” Musyoka noted.

President Kenyatta, on his part, said: “ODM wamesema wanataka kuleta jina la Raila, Wiper wanasema ni Kalonzo, wote ni sawa…sasa tukiingiana pamoja si tuchambue, tutoe ndume moja iende ikapigane na wale wakora wa upande ule mwingine ili tusafishe hii dunia yetu ya Kenya?”

Whether Musyoka and his Wiper party will attend the joint Azimio NDC is the ultimate question.

Odinga has also distanced himself from the Musyoka terms saying that the decision to join Azimio la Umoja is entirely dependent on the former vice president.

“Please don’t tell me about OKA, we will deal with those who come to us…nobody is being coerced or forced to join Azimio.  Azimio is basically a movement for the willing,” Odinga said at a past rally.

Musyoka’s Ukambani political stronghold has more than 1.6 million registered voters, a sizeable vote basket that is the target of presidential hopefuls, as the Kenyatta succession race gathers pace.