A top ally of Deputy President William Ruto Bomet MP Ronald Tonui has trashed Uhuru-Raila handshake claiming that ODM leader Raila Odinga is in the deal just for his selfish gains waiting for crisis so that he can celebrate.
Mr Tonui said Dr Ruto did not need an endorsement from the country’s political bigwigs to ascend to the presidency as he had the support of the masses.
“Mr Odinga is a hypocrite who only thrives on crisis but has nothing tangible to offer the country,” said the Bomet MP .
This was said after news over talks a merger coalition between Uhuru faction of Jubilee and Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) ahead of the 2022 general election.
What emerges clearly is that the DP’s allies are not ready to engage in a coalition with Mr Odinga owing to their previous experience with him and the fall-out in ODM ahead of the formation of URP and subsequently Jubilee.
The MPs also fear being irrelevant in a new outfit: “Entering into a coalition with ODM would result in the natural but unfortunate death of Jubilee party and would negate the economic achievements realized under President Kenyatta’s leadership,” said Mr Ainamoi MP Sylvanus Maritim.
The proposal puts Ruto in an awkward position as it comes two months after he ruled out any chances of a merger between the two parties terming it impossible “now or in the future as the two parties’ manifestos and democratic principles are poles apart.”
The panic is fueled by what Tanga tanga MPs call a deliberate failure by President Kenyatta to convene a Parliamentary Group meeting since the last general election in what has made MPs read from different scripts on national issues