Acid test awaits Jubilee Party in ward by-elections

An acid test awaits the newly established Jubilee Party as it seeks to register its first elected leaders in by-elections to be held in four wards in Kisii, Tana River, Turkana and Kajiado counties.

The by-elections, slated for October 26, will also provide an opportunity for the party to test its popularity ahead of the 2017 General Election.

The mini-polls will be held in Nyacheki (Kisii), Mosiro (Kajiado), Sala (Tana River) and Kalokol (Turkana).

In Kisii county, for instance, Jubilee Party has already settled on Maxwell Magoma as its candidate for the seat, which fell vacant following the death of Peter Ongeri.

Mr Magoma will battle it out with ODM’s Naftali Onkoba.

The seat is expected to attract considerable attention from the top leadership of the two parties.

Jubilee Party has been keen to wrestle the region’s support from ODM, and Cord by extension, going by the number of visits and development projects launched by both President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto.

Cord, on the other hand, will also be seeking to maintain its strong grip of the region that overwhelmingly voted for it in the 2013 General Election. Cord’s co-principal Raila Odinga is expected to tour the area next month to campaign for their candidate.

EXPRESSED OPTIMISM

On Saturday, the county’s ODM second deputy chairman David Ontegi expressed optimism that the party will easily retain the seat.

“We are not going to leave anything to chance and indications are that we will reclaim the seat,” he said.

Already campaigns have begun in earnest with the candidates conducting door-to-door visits to sell their policies. It is yet to be confirmed whether any of Jubilee Party bigwigs will visit the region to drum up support for their flagbearer.

It will not be smooth sailing for Mr Odinga, considering the fact that some of his trusted lieutenants from the region, including Senator Chris Obure and a host of MPs allied to him, have openly flirted with the Jubilee government.

His ODM local branch office is also locked in leadership wrangles, with a faction consisting largely of activists staking claim to branch leadership.

Faction boss Samuel Omwando, a former Kisii mayor, last month staged a coup by taking over the leadership of the party. He claimed Senator Obure was no longer the branch chair because of his open dalliance with Jubilee.

ODM national chairman John Mbadi has since disowned the group, saying the party does not subscribe to coups.

CLINCH POSITION

On Saturday, the party’s national treasurer Timothy Bosire said that despite the wrangles, they will camp in Nyacheki and ensure they clinch the position.

“We don’t expect much opposition but that does not mean we will leave anything to chance,” he told the Nation on Saturday, adding that the party’s popularity is intact.

He said county residents will not buy Jubilee’s empty promises.

“They cannot be trusted. They have reached a dead-end and they will not have it easy in the election,” said the Kitutu Masaba MP.

He criticised the Gusii Unity caucus fronted by Senator Obure.

The Nyacheki outcome, pundits say, is likely to inform the direction the community will take during the coming General Election.

Nyacheki Ward is among several others in the larger Bobasi constituency and home to Senator Obure and former Cabinet Minister Prof Sam Ongeri, a Jubilee titan.