Party woes, Jubilee forays worry Raila Odinga

Opposition leader Raila Odinga is facing a barrage of new challenges from within and outside his ODM party as President Uhuru Kenyatta intensifies forays into his strongholds.

The President’s Wednesday rally in Mumias in Kakamega County is seen as the latest of many such onslaughts.

By choosing to personally hand over a cheque to bail out the limping Mumias Sugar, an event attended by all key politicians from the area, Mr Kenyatta extended a hand of friendship to a region that has been complaining of neglect by the Jubilee administration for two years.

President Kenyatta’s recent nomination of Mr Eugene Wamalwa as Water and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary and that of retired Major-General Gordon Kihalangwa as Interior Principal secretary signalled his determination to win over one of Mr Odinga’s most important vote zones.

The plan by Brookside Dairies, owned by the President’s family, to sponsor AFC Leopards, the preferred football club for the people of western Kenya, is also being seen as part of this charm offensive.

Increasing fatigue among Mr Odinga’s traditional supporters, who are demanding more than hope, is giving those in the former prime minister’s camp sleepless nights.

Some analysts believe any gesture by the Jubilee government such as the Mumias Sugar bailout and the recent distribution of title deeds in the coast region could turn the tide in its favour.

Political commentator Barrack Muluka told the Saturday Nation that Mumias Sugar, Nzoia Sugar, Pan Paper Mills and Mudete Tea Factory are the nerve centres of the Luhya economy and anyone who comes to their assistance will be a dear friend while anyone who tries to scuttle the efforts becomes an enemy.

“What the Luhya leaders are saying is that if President Kenyatta and his deputy, Mr William Ruto, become their friends so be it,” Mr Muluka said.

THANKED THE GOVERNMENT

The Saturday Nation has learnt that Mr Odinga is uncomfortable with the Western Kenya Parliamentary Caucus, associated with restive ODM Secretary-General Ababu Namwamba and under whose auspices the Mumias bailout was organised.

After MPs voted in the National Assembly on Thursday to increase the Supplementary Budget by Sh2 billion to go into the rights issue for Mumias, Mr Namwamba thanked the government for the partial bailout and warned off critics.

“Being a representative of the people of western Kenya, may it be known that anybody opposed to the bailout for cheap political reasons or whatever personal differences, will be declared an enemy of the people of western Kenya,” he said.

His remarks appeared to have been aimed more at his colleagues in the Opposition and prodded Deputy Minority Leader Jakoyo Midiwo to respond.

“We should not take questions of procedure to mean opposition. I want to support the sentiments of my brother Ababu. You must revive Mumias because it is the only thing people there have to look up to,” Mr Midiwo said.

Majority Leader Aden Duale also sought to make political capital out of the Mumias bailout.

“Of the many things we are doing, we are saving the livelihoods of over three million Kenyans from a region that is very rich, both in cane and in votes. The votes will come in 2017, but today I am happy,” said Mr Duale.

On Thursday, Mr Duale and Budget Committee chairman Mutava Musyimi worked overtime to get the House to hold an extra sitting to pass the Supplementary Appropriation Bill.

Treasury Principal Secretary Kamau Thugge also spent the better part of the morning meeting with the Budget Committee to discuss the matter.

The Jubilee leaders are reported to have been surprised when they returned from Mumias on Wednesday evening to find that the Budget team had rejected the Treasury’s request for the Sh2 billion for the rights issue.

Senate Majority Leader Kithure Kindiki described President Kenyatta’s move as a game changer for the next election.

He said while President Kenyatta’s forays would clearly bear political capital, the bigger bonus was that “he has set the bar of the presidency very high by being true to his role as a symbol of national unity”.

He said the President had struck a blow for democracy by ensuring no one is punished for political decisions.

“His message has been: you shouldn’t be punished for your political decision; it is your right,” Prof Kindiki said.

He said this approach would make his re-election campaign easier.

“Our strategy will be to reach out to regions which may not have voted for us en masse like Kisii, Coast and even Luo Nyanza. I can assure you we will reap big from these well-thought out moves,” he said.

'INSIGNIFICANT' GESTURE

But ODM Secretary for Political Affairs Opiyo Wandayi said there was much ado about nothing over the Mumias rally.

“This is not the first time (the) government is bailing out a company. The gesture is too insignificant to change Jubilee’s floundering fortunes in western and other Cord strongholds,” he said.

Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar said President Kenyatta’s recent actions were informed by panic emanating from “Jubilee’s exclusionist campaign”.

“It is very simplistic for him to think that by bailing out a company, he can sway a whole community. They are realising late in the day that their ethnic composition is wanting,” the Wiper senator said.

But Mr Odinga is also battling infighting in his home turf.

He was recently forced to summon MPs from Luo Nyanza to quell infighting among some of them, such as between nominated lawmaker Oburu Oginga and his Gem counterpart Jakoyo Midiwo.

His main concern is that such feuds would take the momentum from his rebranding campaign.

Another headache for Mr Odinga is that his anti-graft rallying cry has been dampened by the fact that some members of Cord, especially governors, have been accused of corruption.