Ruto allies plot to depose Raila in ODM fights

Ready for war? Former cabinet minister William Ruto joins traditional dances at a recent public rally in Kapsabet. Rebel Orange Democratic Movement MPs allied to Ruto met to craft a response to the move by their rivals in the party to expel five of their colleagues. Photo/JARED NYATAYA

Rebel Orange Democratic Movement MPs allied to suspended minister William Ruto have met to craft a response to the move by their rivals in the party to expel five of their colleagues.

Two options were said to have been on the table during a meeting attended by up to 32 MPs.

The most radical one, it is said, was to quit the party en mass to strip it of its majority in Parliament and leave party boss Raila Odinga exposed to challenge over his position as Prime Minister.

The National Accord reserves the post for the leader of the majority party in Parliament.

The other option is to fight the case.

No agreement was reached and further meetings will be called to debate the matter.

On Wednesday, two party members allied to Prime Minister Raila Odinga went to court seeking a ruling to expel Mr (William) Ruto, Mr Aden Duale, Mr Charles Keter, Mr Isaac Ruto and Mr Joshua Kutuny. (See story)

The party’s parliamentary group and National Executive Council met and resolved to support the case filed by Mr Mpuri Aburi and Mr Kepher Odongo at the High Court.

Chief Whip Jakoyo Midiwo said the top party organs resolved that the case was “good” and they will support it.

‘‘We have to clean up our party. We don’t think it is bad for aggrieved members to go to court,” Mr Midiwo said.

Mr Aburi and Mr Odongo, through lawyer Cecil Miller, argue that the respondents are in Parliament in contravention of Article 103 of the Constitution and Section 17(4) of the Political Parties Act.

They argue that Mr Ruto and the four others have, through public declarations and activities, indicated that they have joined United Democratic Movement. The hearing of a petition will start next Thursday

The Eldoret MP’s team met for two hours at the Parliament Gardens where they discussed the option of resigning from the party en mass and the other of facing the litigants in court.

“We do not see why we should fight to remain in a party that has outlived its ideals and turned into dictatorship,” said Mr Kutuny, the Cherangany MP.

Mr Kutuny said the MPs in attendance agreed that should the Orange party support the expulsion case, they would be reluctant to fight it.

We are ready

“We and ODM are now estranged, and we have reached a point where we are ready for anything ... we will quit the party and seek re-election on UDM, we are not going to be cowed at all,” said Mr Kutuny.

In the meeting that was attended by MPs from Rift Valley, Coast and North Eastern, Mr Ruto is said to have assured them that he would support them to ensure they recapture their seats should they quit.

“Since you have suggested that quitting the party is an option, all I can assure you is that I will give you my support to ensure that none of you loses your seat. I have a lot of energy to dispense should we be forced to go into by-elections,” Mr Ruto is said to have told the MPs.

The Constitution says that a Parliamentary seat falls vacant if a member “resigns from their party or is deemed to have resigned from the party”.

During the meeting, 15 Kalenjin MPs and Mr Duale said they were ready for by-elections anytime.

“The ODM is targeting only five MPs, why not target all of us, we are one and when we move out, the party will collapse .... it should forget the PM position,” said Ms Peris Simam of Eldoret South.

On the option of battling it out in court, the meeting agreed that they would seek competent lawyers to ensure they win the case.

Mr Kutuny said he had instructed Mr Ababu Namwamba, who is also the party’s Parliamentary Group secretary, to defend him in court as they fine tune their strategies.

“We will meet them in court, if they have a strong case and we lose then we will go to the ballot, whichever way for us is a win-win situation,” Mr Kutuny said.

Chepalungu MP Isaac Ruto said he would not defend himself in court preferring let things take their own course.

“My enthusiasm in the party waned long ago, I would not mind if they kick me out, I we have agreed with my constituents that I could still seek re-election on a UDM ticket,” he said.

The meeting urged the Eldoret North MP to strengthen UDM. A series of meetings have been scheduled in the Rift Valley starting Friday.

At the Orange House, Mr Odinga led the party to support the move to kick out the rebels.

However, in a rare case, the party officials did not address journalists after their closed door meeting. Reached on phone, Mr Midiwo said the chest thumbing by the rebels is as a result of indiscipline and impunity.

“They should either be with us or not with us,” Mr Midiwo said.

He said the Ruto allies have been skipping party meetings despite being invited and they “can’t be left to be in two parties.”

He said although ODM and PNU were in a coalition “as ODM MPs we don’t go expressing the views of PNU.”

He said even though UDM and Narc were ODM partners “it is wrong morally and against the Political Parties Act for ODM members to articulate their issues.”

However, Roads minister Franklin Bett warned that Mr Odinga could lose popularity in the Rift Valley for taking the MPs in court.

Speaking to a vernacular radio station, Mr Bett said the move had put Rift Valley MPs allied to the PM in an awkward position.

“The move exposes us to an embarrassing situation at a time people had begun to change their perception about the party and Mr Odinga,’’ he said.

“The timing is wrong because the party now needs to puts itself in order ahead of 2012 elections which is just at the corner,” he said.
But he accused the rebel MPs of seeking to destroy ODM before shifting to UDM.

—Reports by Jacob Ng’etich, Lucas Barasa and Otieno Owida