Uhuru's allies attend Raila, Kalonzo meeting

Two MPs allied to Uhuru Kenyatta's TNA attended a strategy meeting between Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka held at Jogoo house on Thursday afternoon.

Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi and nominated MP Rachel Shebesh were the surprise attendants of the closed door meeting.

Mr Sonko and Ms Shebesh told journalists that they had visited the Vice President for a cup of tea after the meeting.

The meeting lasted about 40 minutes and delved into the respective ODM and Wiper party national delegates conferences (NDC), according to the VP’s spokesperson Baristo Kaplich.

Mr Odinga’s ODM will hold its NDC on Friday, while Wiper Party will convene on Monday next week.

Mr Odinga was accompanied to the meeting by ministers Franklin Bett (Roads) and Dalmas Otieno (Public Service), while Mr Kalonzo had party members Prof Philiph Kaloki, Charles Kilonzo, Gideon Ndambuki and nominated MP Mohammed Affey on his side.

Both camps did not address the media.

According to Mr Kaplich, the meeting also discussed when the leaders will officially launch their Coalition for Reform and Democracy (Cord).

The formal announcement of the power sharing deal was withheld until Mr Odinga’s ODM and Mr Musyoka’s WDM hold their respective NDCs to ratify the positions in accordance with the Political Parties Act

The Act requires that any coalition deal be supported by a resolution of the highest organs of the parties involved.

“They also had a conversation around lobbying for more political parties to join the coalition,” he said.

The meeting comes after Mr odinga and Mr Kilonzo signed a pre-election agreement with 11 other political parties on Tuesday this week.

The deal was sealed on the final day as parties raced against time to beat the deadline to lodge coalition agreements with the Registrar of Political Parties as required by law.

In their agreement, Mr Musyoka and Mr Odinga did not announce who would be the presidential candidate or running mate.

But sources indicated that Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetang’ula was to be the alliance’s majority leader in Parliament if the coalition forms the next government and garners a majority in the House.

Other parties in the Cord alliance include the National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) led by Water Minister Charity Ngilu, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) led by former South Mugirango MP Omingo Magara, and Kenya Social Congress (KSC) of legislator George Anyona, who died in 2003. Mkenya Solidarity associated with former Mungiki leader Maina Njenga, Kalembe Ndile’s Tip, Chama Cha Uzalendo, Kaddu Asili, the United Democratic Movement (UDM), Agano and Muungano form part of the Cord mix.

The agreement, which was crafted by a team of lawyers representing the coalition partners led by Lands Minister James Orengo (ODM), Education Minister Mutula Kilonzo (Wiper) and Mr Chrisanthus Wamalwa (Ford Kenya) has a clause providing for its amendment to accommodate the interests of other parties interested in joining the coalition.