Coastal legislators allied to deputy president William Ruto are on a mission to identify a suitable candidate to be his running mate in 2022.
The Tanga Tanga leaders had a meeting on Sunday where they agreed to come up with a team of political and economic experts from the region to come up with a framework.
Through this framework, the leaders intend to present their grievances to the DP, endorse him for presidency as long as he picks a running mate from the region.
This move will see the coastal team lock horns with their Mount Kenya counterparts who made the same demand to the DP.
In April, a group of Tanga Tanga members from Mt. Kenya presented their economic framework to DP Ruto.
Led by economist David Ndii, the group tasked Ruto with ensuring that his manifesto is geared towards returning economic glory to the region.
They also demanded Ruto to pick his deputy President from the region.
The two Tanga Tanga camps are on a path to collide over their similar demands to Ruto.
On his part, Ruto will have to choose between allegiance to the Coast or the Central part of Kenya.
Seemingly, the Mt Kenya region stands as a higher bidder because they have a high number of voters.
After learning of Tanga Tanga’s plan to demand deputy position from Ruto, President Uhuru’s allies said that they were speaking for the community but themselves.
Murang’a Woman Representative Sabina Chege challenged the group, saying that they were making the right demand, but in the wrong way.
According to Sabina, Mt Kenya Tanga Tanga should not be begging Ruto for a deputy position, but rather, it is him who should approach them and ask for their support.
Reports indicate that the regional politicians recommend former Agriculture CS Mwangi Kiunjuri to be Ruto’s deputy.
On the other hand, the coastal legislators had recommended Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya to act as Ruto’s deputy.
However, this plan faces a hurdle as Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho also intends to vie for presidency under the ODM ticket.
This will divide the region as they will be torn in between going for the top seat through Joho or taking the running mate offer from Ruto.
Hassan Joho’s bid to run for the top seat also faces opposition from his own party, ODM.
His fellow party members have warned Joho against his intention to contest against the party leader, Raila Odinga.
Even though Raila has not submitted his nomination papers, party members still believe that he will be contesting, and is the best man for the job.
“After every year we have elections and the seats remain vacant. ODM is a national party and people have the liberty to vie for positions,” Raila said after learning of Joho’s ambitions.
