Mudavadi team plans to play ‘run-off card’ against Raila

The ODM party is bracing itself for what is likely to be anxious moments ahead of the General Election with the party’s deputy leader, Mr Musalia Mudavadi, set to challenge Prime Minister Raila Odinga for the presidential ticket.

Mr Mudavadi’s handlers have already hit the ground running, reaching out to party members across the country to sell his agenda and vision for the party. (READ: ODM ready for general polls, Mudavadi)

Last week, the Deputy Prime Minister was in the Coast region where he met the party’s grassroots leaders from Kwale, Kilifi and Taita-Taveta counties. On Monday, Mr Mudavadi’s entourage will be headed to Kajiado county for a series of meetings with the local leaders.

The Mudavadi camp is fashioning him as the candidate who will ensure a straight win in the first round in the presidential election, thus avoiding the necessity of a run-off.

Political strongholds

The strategy is based on reports that presidential aspirants identified with the G7 Alliance of Kalonzo Musyoka, Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, George Saitoti and Eugene Wamalwa are all likely to run for the presidency in order to lock the PM out of their political strongholds thereby denying him the requisite 50 per cent plus one majority and 25 per cent vote in 24 counties.

This will force a run-off between the PM, presuming he emerges first in the first round, and the runners-up, at which point they will all rally behind Mr Odinga’s opponent.

In an interview with the Sunday Nation, Mr Mudavadi said his bid to challenge Mr Odinga should not be misconstrued as aimed at undermining the party or self seeking.

“I am one leader who has accepted that if I want to lead others, I must at all times accept to be led. I have given all my political life to this democratic principle. I believe good leadership must embrace the spirit of competition; see competition as an asset rather than as detraction,” he said.

His candidature

Addressing the party’s delegates in Karen in the presence of the PM, Mr Mudavadi announced that he would tour the counties to popularise his candidature and stated that this should not be seen as a move to undermine Mr Odinga.

“I intend to make visits to counties. The PM is aware. He too shall make visits to various counties. I am aware. There are no secrets between us. We are doing this in the spirit of mutual respect to enhance internal democracy in our party,” he said.

“You shall not hear one negative word I shall utter about Raila. I shall go to popularise the party. It is a must. We must work to make the party vibrant. If we work like that, we shall see people running back to ODM in droves, those people who have said they have left the party.”

But, even as Mr Mudavadi’s camp burns the midnight oil popularising his candidature, it has had to fight off claims that he is a project of the G7 Alliance to defeat Mr Odinga from within. Mr Mudavadi was forced to come clean on his candidature during the Karen meeting following media reports depicting him as a G7 project.

“We must not fall prey to insinuations by our opponents who continue to undermine unity in the party. I will not want you to be misguided by the headline that G7 is behind Musalia Mudavadi. G7 is already dead,” he said.

“In any case, why would they want to support Musalia who will hand them a resounding defeat? So let us look at it contemptuously because some of us want to remain principled,” he added.

Mr Mudavadi’s backers are pitching for an American-style presidential primaries where delegates will pick their preferred candidate at the county level rather than at the National Delegates Conference.

But, unlike the American system, where the presidential primaries are spread over a period of time, the ODM primaries ought to be held on the same day to comply with the Elections Act and Political Parties Act as well as to save the party unnecessary expenses in transporting and accommodating delegates in Nairobi.

“By devolving the nominations, we will avoid a situation where imposters surface at Kasarani masquerading as delegates leading to bitter fallouts in the party,” Mr Mudavadi said.

Needs to formalise

Sources in the party confirmed that the proposal to move the presidential primaries to the counties was first discussed and informally agreed upon during the party’s Governing Council meeting held in October 2010.

“The resolution was, however, not filed with the Registrar of Political Parties and that is what the party needs to formalise before we hold our primaries,” said Kibisu Kabatesi, an aide of Mr Mudavadi.

Mr Mudavadi says it is imperative that the party decentralises its nomination to the grassroots if it has to live up to its stature as the party of devolution.

“In 2007, ODM was the party for a new Constitution. This year, we are the party of devolution. We must again demonstrate our commitment to devolution in party nominations. As many party officials as possible at the grassroots, especially women and youth, should participate to ensure our candidates have wide and popular support,” the DPM said.

“It will be failed hope for women and the youth, who are actually two-thirds of ODM officials at any level, if they feel they have not been offered the opportunity to participate in nominations in their large numbers,” he added.

Mr Mudavadi warned that the party stands to lose big time if it does not strictly comply with the Elections Act, the Political Parties Act and the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Act when conducting its nominations.

He asked those aspiring for elective offices on an ODM ticket to ensure they comply with laws such as Article 26 of the Elections Act, which bars aspiring politicians from participating in harambees at least eight months to the election.

Campaigns in churches

“There is also Article 6 of the Code of Conduct, which prohibits campaigns in churches and funerals. These prohibitions may look innocent at face value, but if I want to eliminate a strong ODM candidate, I can sit somewhere, monitor him, cheat him to go and do all harambees or campaign in churches, mosques and funerals, and video-tape him and then finish him on the day of presenting nomination papers,” he said.

Mr Odinga, the party leader, sounded upbeat as he addressed the party delegates on January 12.

“We have been through tough four years. Many times we had to make compromises. Many times we pushed unpopular programmes that were necessary for the future of our nation. I don’t take for granted that support that brought us this far. That support was never in vain. It gave the party significant successes on our election promises. We never wavered in the quest for a new Constitution.

“Thanks to our steadfastness, our country got a modern, progressive and liberating Constitution in 2010. A new Constitution was our number one election promise,” he said.

Mr Odinga said ODM was now prepared to steer Kenya to the next level.

“ODM is felt all over. ODM is the only party that has a network in all parts of Kenya. We are prepared to form the government and improve the living standards of Kenyans,” he said

The Premier said the party had grown bigger even with the departure of some people, which he termed a blessing in disguise. He added that ODM would open “Orange House” offices in every county to devolve party programmes to the grassroots.

Mr Odinga said ODM would not enter into alliances as it was strong enough to face the rest of the political parties in the General Election. “ODM will go it alone,” he declared.