Opposition to field one aspirant to remove Tunai

Narok County Governor Samuel ole Tunai addresses residents of Naroosura in the past. PHOTO | GEORGE SAYAGIE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

The opposition in Narok County will field one gubernatorial candidate to compete against incumbent Samuel ole Tunai, it can now be revealed.

Elders and religious leaders allied to opposition parties are already in talks to get former ICT principal secretary Joseph Tiampati Musuni and Patrick Ntutu to agree on who between them should drop his bid and support the other.

The group spearheading the talks said they want a strong candidate to stand against Mr Tunai on August 8.

But there is a strong preference for Mr Ntutu to be fronted for the seat while Mr Musuni is being persuaded to shelve his bid and throw his support behind Mr Ntutu.

If the two candidates agree to the proposal, Mr Tunai will have to work harder to retain his seat.

SUICIDAL

Maasai elders chairman Hassan Ole Kamwaro has confirmed the talks, saying they are trying to prevail on the two candidates to reach an agreement as their main aim is to send Mr Tunai home.

“We do not mind who between them will be selected. But one has to support the other for Mr Tunai to go home,” said Mr Kamwaro.

He said it would be suicidal to have both of them on the ballot as that would give Mr Tunai a clean win.

However, he says Mr Ntutu and Mr Musuni must reach a deal, as both command immense political support across the county.

“We want them to put down their pride and selfish interests and work for the betterment of Narok County,” he said.

RESISTANCE

But the push to get Mr Musuni to drop his bid has attracted a lot of opposition from his supporters, with Narok North MP Moitalel Ole Kenta saying they will not settle for anyone other than him.

Mr Musuni and Mr Ntutu are from the populous Purko clan while Mr Tunai hails from the minority Siria clan.

Mr Kenta said a majority of elders backed Mr Musuni in an open community mock election two years ago, meaning he is the right person to stand against Mr Tunai.

“Mr Ntutu conceded and undertook to abide by the decision under oath only to change his mind after a few days. What made him turn against the decision is suspect and only self-serving,” he says.

He said the decision to have one candidate facing the incumbent was made a long time ago.

‘JUBILEE PLAN’

“We are a community that makes a decision and sticks to it,” he added.

The tussle between the two aspirants is threatening to tear the opposition apart in Narok County and may advantage Mr Tunai.

Mr Kenta claims the grand plan for those pushing for Mr Ntutu's candidature is to help Mr Tunai to retain his seat.

“This is a Jubilee Party plan,” he says.

Mr Tunai is seeking to retain the seat on a Jubilee ticket while Mr Ntutu is using Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto's Chama Cha Mashinani and Mr Musuni is the ODM party candidate.

According to Mr Kenta, the elders have not proved that Mr Ntutu is a stronger candidate than Mr Musuni.