Three days after President Uhuru Kenyatta’s confidant David Murathe declared that Jubilee Party has no candidate for State House race in 2022, Deputy President William Ruto’s allies are planning a counter-move in the new year that he hopes will turn the tide in his favour going forward.
On Friday, Dr Ruto reached out to members of county assemblies (MCAs) as he sought to solidify his national support across the country ahead of 2022.
Dr Ruto met MCAs from Kakamega, Baringo and Elgeyo-Marakwet counties at his Sugoi home in Uasin Gishu County.
Though the agenda of the meeting was “empowering MCAs to strengthen devolution”, sources said that 2022 succession politics cropped up, with the MCAs assuring Dr Ruto of their unwavering support.
This week, conversations with a number of Dr Ruto’s allies suggested that they are not sitting pretty, even after the President moved to allay fears on Friday that he never engaged in 2022 politics with ODM leader Raila Odinga in their March 9 “handshake” that has dramatically changed the political scene.
During an interview in Mombasa on Friday, the President dwelt at length on the Building Bridges Initiative, saying it would be part of his administration’s priority focus area in 2019.
Dr Ruto’s lieutenants, who double up as members of “the war council” charged with delivering the presidency, are working on a multi-pronged blueprint they hope will neutralise the effects of the political truce (handshake) Mr Kenyatta had with Mr Odinga on March 9.
The truce has increasingly blunted his succession plan and emboldened those against his State House bid, some even in the ruling party.
Part of the plan is to go public on their displeasure and, at some point, play the victim card.
This, we gathered, will be intended to make the President and his allies look dishonest in the court of public opinion. The hope is that this could boost Dr Ruto’s popularity ratings.
“We were together as Jubilee Party under the slogan “Tuko Pamoja” (we are together). But are we really together?” Majority Whip Ben Washiali, who sits in the council, said.
He went on: “We were together and we are now out. You can’t keep telling us that we are together when you have other people at the eating table. Let’s see what the new year holds.”
He hinted that a major announcement on a way forward could be coming.
“If he (Dr Ruto) has an MoU with Mr Kenyatta, then that was an agreement between two individuals,” Mr Murathe said on Wednesday in Vihiga, sentiments that have now sparked a political storm.
While opinion is divided inside the DP’s camp on whether such a move would be prudent, going for an all-out war more than three years to the next elections, there is near consensus after Mr Murathe’s remarks that the deep State is keen to back somebody else to take over from Mr Kenyatta.