ODM to boycott Cabinet

ODM secretary general Anyang’ Nyong’o (left) speaks at Orange House on Tuesday in support of party leader Raila Odinga’s move to suspend Cabinet ministers Sam Ongeri (Education) and William Ruto (Agriculture). He is with deputy vice chairman Ramadhan Kajembe. Photo/PHOEBE OKALL

What you need to know:

  • Coalition partners stoke the fires of disagreement with a string of press conferences as crisis in government enters the third day

The crisis in the Grand Coalition Government escalated on Tuesday after Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s ODM declared a boycott of Cabinet meetings until the rift is resolved.

The decision was taken during the party’s joint Parliamentary Group and National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held on Tuesday.

The meeting, chaired by national vice-chairman Ramadhan Kajembe and secretary general Anyang’ Nyong’o also dwelt on disciplinary measures to be taken against its members who do not toe the official party position.

ODM divided

ODM is itself divided with two ministers, William Ruto of Agriculture and Najib Balala of Tourism quick to say they would defy the boycott.

Calls for ODM ministers to boycott Cabinet meetings had first been voiced by Lands minister James Orengo at a press conference at his office.

Mr Orengo, who later joined his colleagues at the NEC/PG meeting, had announced that ODM ministers would only attend Cabinet meetings once the rift between their party and President Kibaki’s PNU was resolved.

But in a swift rejoinder, Mr Ruto and Mr Balala vowed to defy the directive and accused the party’s leadership of dictatorship.

“They should stop running the affairs of the party as if it were their own,” the Agriculture minister said, “ODM is bigger than individuals”.

Mr Balala accused some leaders in ODM of running the party like a one-man show.

“This is the dictatorial thing that some of us in the party are opposed to, because they don’t consult anybody. If they want us to pull together, they must learn to consult senior members like us who belong to the pentagon,” he said.

The stand taken by the two is likely to put them on a collision course with the party leadership after Tuesday’s meeting called upon ODM national chairman Henry Kosgey to convene a retreat so that members could discuss ways of disciplining those who do not toe the line.

“We have asked the party’s chairman Henry Kosgey to convene a retreat so that we can discuss ways of enforcing discipline in the party,” Prof Nyong’o said.

Enforce discipline

Asked what action the party would take against ministers who defied the resolution to boycott Cabinet meetings, Prof Nyong’o shot back: “That is why we are calling for a retreat to discuss ways of enforcing discipline in the party.”

The party meeting did not state whether the boycott would extend to skipping ministerial duties and functions or would be limited to missing Cabinet meetings.

The meeting, attended by more than 20 MPs, including four Cabinet ministers and several assistant ministers backed Mr Odinga’s decision to suspend Mr Ruto and his Education counterpart Sam Ongeri over corruption allegations.

The MPs accused President Kibaki of failing to deal with corruption allegations facing his ministers, while praising the PM for his bold anti-graft crusade.

“The disagreement between the President and the Prime Minister is not about power, it is a fight against corruption, we call upon the President to deal with all acts of corruption decisively instead of sabotaging the Prime Minister’s bold actions,” Prof Nyong’o added.

Others at the meeting included Cabinet ministers Joseph Nyaga and Dalmas Otieno.

Also present was the party’s national treasurer Omingo Magara who has been previously linked to the Ruto camp.

Prof Nyong’o, who is the Medical Services minister, revealed that ODM had written to chief mediator Kofi Annan prior to Mr Odinga’s announcement suspending the two ministers.

“ODM wrote a letter to African Union on eighth of this month because we foresaw trouble ahead, and like a boil, it boiled over,” said Prof Nyong’o.

Mr Balala expressed shock that he was with Mr Orengo Tuesday morning, yet the Lands minister never informed him of the afternoon announcement.

“I was with Orengo this (Tuesday) morning, sat next to him, but he never mentioned a thing! I will not buy that.”

On Sunday ODM leader Mr Odinga suspended party deputy leader Mr Ruto from his Cabinet position for 90 days alongside Prof Ongeri, who is from the PNU wing of the coalition, to pave the way for investigations into the maize and education scandals.

But the defiant ministers said Mr Odinga was not their “appointing authority”, and asked him to instead step aside because he chaired the Cabinet committee that approved the procurement of the grains illegally.

However, Mr Orengo on Tuesday exonerated Mr Odinga of any wrongdoing in the procurement of subsidised maize, as the chairman of a Cabinet committee that approved the importation.

“Mr Odinga chairs all committees of Cabinet except that of security,” he said “if that is the allegation then, the entire Cabinet is responsible for the sleaze and fraud.”

The PricewaterhouseCoopers report on the maize scandal, says the country lost Sh2 billion in the deal.