Exorcism of the ‘devil’, vuvuzelas, cheers and jeers at delegates’ meet

Jubilee alliance leaders continued to exorcise the “devil” on Sunday as the coalition endorsed Mr Uhuru Kenyatta to vie for the top seat in the March 4 poll.

It was all drama, cheering and jeering as each politician took to the stage, first to shower praises on Mr Kenyatta and his running mate William Ruto, and then declaring their bond with the alliance.

Assistant minister Linah Kilimo read a verse from the Bible to state Mr Kenyatta’s destiny had already been made before he was born and that no one would stand in his way.

Kacheliba MP Samuel Poghisio asserted that Jubilee was in fact written in the holy book and so it was already blessed.

Seated in a 6,000 capacity Kasarani gymnasium, the yellow-and-red-clad delegates cheered when Makadara MP Gideon Mbuvi, the coordinator of the programme, termed those calling Jubilee a tribal alliance, the “devils”.

“Whoever is saying Jubilee is tribal is the devil. We condemn him to fail,” he said.

In a convention that was largely based on responding to the Cord rally a day earlier at Uhuru Park, delegates also chose to remix the “yote yawezekana” song.

On Saturday, Cord delegates sang “yote yawezekana bila Ruto”, here, they replied “yote yawezekana bila Raila.”

Police did there part, and although occasional commotion was witnessed here and there, the dome remained largely peaceful, only responding to ‘fine lines’ by politicians.

Those who could not enter the dome found something else to do outside. While some chose to while their time away under trees catching the news on their tiny pocket radios, pick-pockets revisited their daily chores.

Sometime in the middle of the programme, a suspected phone thief was chased down the stairs of the gymnasium, into the flower gardens.

Pursuers increased as shouts of ‘thief!’ ‘thief!’ rent the air, some carrying anything they could find for a weapon. Then it turned out the person who had raised an alarm was actually the thief himself.

The crowd turned around to change course of pursuit but police saved him.

Back to the dome, vuvuzelas continued to deafen the hall as speakers struggled to drive their points home. Names of politicians were mentioned and each bearer rose with his or her trademark greeting either for identification or to say something.

Minister Yusuf Haji, Matuga MP Chirau Mwakwere, Narc leader Charity Ngilu, Mvita MP Najib Balala, among others, addressed the gathering.