Karua takes the battle to Kibaki on elections

Rifts within President Kibaki’s wing of the ruling coalition deepened on Wednesday after a grouping led by Justice minister Martha Karua escalated their campaign against the PNU elections called by the President’s allies.

They warned that their support for the President and his government should not be taken for granted.

Ms Karua for Narc Kenya, and former Cabinet ministers Musikari Kombo and Joseph Munyao for Ford Kenya and DP respectively, dismissed a recent meeting chaired by President Kibaki that amended the PNU constitution to allow for individual members as a mere baraza (public meeting).

Recruitment

The meeting had set next week for the start of a recruitment drive followed by party polls beginning October 12.

“We do not attend barazas to discuss top party matters” Ms Karua said of the PNU Parliamentary Group meeting convened by the President where a decision was ratified to enrol individual members and hold party elections.

The three parties released a statement that amounted to a direct attack on President Kibaki, though not by name, recalling the dishonoured MoU that brought him to power.

“The PNU fraternity has a history of not respecting any agreements or MoUs like the 2002 Narc and now the failed 2007 PNU affiliate parties agreement,” said the statement read by assistant minister Danson Mungatana.

They accused the PG meeting of amending the PNU constitution fraudulently, saying, some of the affiliate parties were misusing the President’s name to legitimise illegal grassroots elections.

Dissolution

President Kibaki as named PNU Party Leader during the PG meeting last month.

Regional officials were also appointed, excluding leaders of affiliate parties opposed to dissolution of their outfits in favour of strengthening the coalition. Ms Karua, Mr Munyao and Mr Kombo were among those who were left out.

As the group led by Ms Karua was meeting at the DP offices in Nairobi, a rival group of President Kibaki’s allies, including ministers from PNU, and representatives of Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka’s ODM Kenya and Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta’s Kanu was having its own session at Panafric Hotel to discuss remaining united under the PNU banner as their vehicle for the 2012 elections.

They discussed how affiliates could maintain their separate identities, but remain a grand movement to contest the next elections.

Ms Karua, on the other hand, led allied parties’ officials in opposing PNU elections, and warned their members against participating.

They accused the acting Registrar of Political Parties Lucy Ndung’u of contravening the law by giving PNU the green light to recruit individual members and hold grassroots election.

“We urge her not to transform her new office into an extension of inconsistencies and inefficiency obtaining at her former office of Registrar of Societies,” they said.

PNU, they said, was formed as a “party of parties” and that it is meant to recruit political parties “the same way an umbrella cooperative union recruits other cooperatives as its members.”

They termed PNU’s change of constitution to allow individual membership as illegal.

At Panafric, Energy minister Kiraitu Murungi (PNU) and Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama (ODM-K)) said their aim was to build “one country for all Kenyans.”

“As elected MPs, we want a country with only three major parties and cut the number of small parties, which only promote tribalism,” Mr Muthama said.

Mr Murungi said the coming together of ODM-Kenya, PNU and Kanu will not affect their identities as PNU coalition allowed both individual and corporate membership.

According to the Political Parties Act, which parties have to comply with by December 31, parties have to have individual members.

As a result, Mr Murungi said that PNU will go ahead with its polls set to start on Monday.

“The recruitment is still on,” he said and dismissed opposition for the exercise by some PNU affiliates.

Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka hinted last month that ODM-Kenya would remain in alliance with PNU after grassroots and branch elections in readiness for the 2012 polls.