Cracks deepen in ODM

• The rivalry within ODM’s ranks is threatening to tear it apart, with strong indications that leaders from Rift Valley are seeking new political alliances

The fallout within ODM has taken a new dimension as Agriculture minister William Ruto’s supporters seek to wrest control of the party from Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

There is even talk of new political alliances. On Friday, the PM and Mr Ruto attended different rallies within a radius of 5km of Kisii.

At the meeting attended by Mr Ruto, South Mugirango MP Omingo Magara sprang a surprise when he paraded officials of a party named the People’s Development Party (PDP) and asked the crowd to “watch it closely”.

The party is one of the corporate members of the ODM coalition.

MPs allied to both leaders have taken divergent positions on several key matters in Parliament. Mr Ruto has also been on the offensive to consolidate his position in the party in what ODM insiders see as part of the battle leading to the party’s eventual nominations to pick its presidential candidate for the next General Election.

Mr Ruto, a deputy party leader, is seen as seeking to win the backing of the various parties within the ODM coalition as he seeks to strengthen his hand in the party.

But Mr Odinga’s allies have dismissed the minister’s efforts as those of a man who has failed to read the mood of the nation and signals being sent by the international community on the need to try people suspected of financing post-election violence.

Several MPs interviewed by the Sunday Nation conceded that the deep divisions within ODM had led to consideration of new alliances.

The differences within the party played out as Mr Odinga campaigned for the ODM candidate in the upcoming Bomachoge by-election.

Although the PM told one rally that Mr Ruto and Mr Magara would join the final rally at Menyenya where he said the Agriculture minister would listen to the complaints of tea farmers, the duo never showed up.

On Saturday, Mr Magara said he had informed the PM about the harambee held in his constituency in advance and that Mr Odinga understood.

“We consulted with the Prime Minister on Wednesday, and I explained that the harambee was postponed last time because the President was touring Sondu Miriu. He understood, and we struck a bargain that both functions would go ahead,” he said.

Mr Magara and several other MPs at the rally vowed to shoot down a bill that would pave the way for trial of those suspected of being behind the post-election violence.

The MP, who is ODM’s national treasurer, said the party had not taken a position on the matter, adding that earlier pronouncements by the party’s secretary-general Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o that the party would back the bill were personal.

Vice-chairman Adan Duale and organising secretary Ali Hassan Joho dismissed claims of cracks in the party.

“ODM is very strong. What we have are different opinions on issues like the Mau complex dispute and trials of post-election violence suspects,” Mr Duale said.

Behind the scenes, Mr Ruto’s allies seem to be working to strengthen their grip on ODM and its affiliates.

“We are nominally in ODM for now, and we will work with the government of the day, but we will exercise our right to seek other options later,” said Chepalungu MP Isaac Ruto.

The activities of the United Democratic Movement (UDM), in particular, stand out. The party has made moves to consolidate its support in Rift Valley Province and among the pastoralist communities.

It has held several rallies in Isiolo and Narok in the past few weeks as part of its strategy to broaden its base. The party has been cited as a possible option for Rift Valley MPs, should they decamp from ODM.

UDM director of elections Moses Cheboi told the Sunday Nation the party would welcome any defectors from ODM but said no negotiations had taken place yet.

“The Political Parties Act allows for coalitions. If Rift Valley MPs joined us, we would be very happy, but at the moment we are focusing on popularising the party because the elections are three years away,” he said.

A close ally of Mr Odinga, who requested anonymity to freely discuss the PM’s strategy, said Mr Odinga had opted to ignore Mr Ruto.

He said the PM would not cede ground over the Mau settlers. This has caused divisions within ODM, and Mr Ruto, he said, was using the issue to whip up tribal support.

The PM, he said, believes Mr Ruto has also misread the public mood in his oppositionto the trial of post-election violence perpetrators.

“Mr Ruto seems to believe that the 2007 violence case will be treated the same way the 1992 and 1997 clashes were, without consequences for perpetrators. But he is wrong on this,” he said.

“Raila has found it hard to understand Ruto’s position that trial of violence suspects targets the people of Rift Valley. He says ODM supporters were shot in many places like Kisumu, Kibera, Mathare, Naivasha, and those people want justice. The PM does not understand at what stage dealing with post-election violence became a witch hunt on the people of the Rift Valley,” he said.

A possible beneficiary of the wrangles in ODM is the Party of National Unity whose senior leaders are said to be reaching out quietly to some of the disaffected ODM members.

One of the PNU vice-chairmen, George Nyamweya, said the party would build a strong alliance ahead of the next General Election. He added that PNU was working to ensure MPs backing the party vote together in Parliament.

A motion introduced by a PNU MP Jamleck Kamau, which seeks to have the President appoint the Leader of Government Business in the House, is likely to provide an indication of the shifting alliances in the next few weeks.

The motion is politically loaded because Mr Odinga and Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka have laid claim to the position, and it will be seen as a bid by some MPs to clip Mr Odinga’s wings. It is unclear whether the motion will be put to the vote because it appears to seek an amendment of parliamentary standing orders, something that cannot be done on the floor of the House.

But Mr Nyamweya said PNU and its supporters would push the motion through to uphold “the constitutional position that the President is the head of state and government”.

All this manoeuvring comes at a time when the President and Mr Odinga appear to be patching up their differences, with the President making his most explicit statement that the PM is in charge of coordinating the affairs of government.

But the PM has to grapple with divisions within ODM with the Rift Valley bloc seemingly keen to ship out.