The Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka is reported to have made hard-tough demands to President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga before joining Azimio La Umoja coalition.
The demands by the Kalonzo team could have influenced the decision to postpone the official unveiling of Azimio la Umoja which was expected to happen Saturday, February 26.
“They were supposed to sign members but it is agreed we will have a serious launch of the Azimio coalition in two weeks’ time, where all parties that subscribe to Azimio will be invited,” Junet said during the ODM National Delegates meeting.
Among the demands that Kalonzo and his One Kenya Alliance team have forwarded to President Uhuru and Raila is the push for a coalition-to-coalition deal as opposed to a single-party agreement as fronted by Raila Odinga.
The worry among OKA affiliate parties is that a party-party coalition will technically render the OKA outfit dead.
In an interview with The Star Newspaper, Kalonzo Musyoka’s close ally and Kathiani MP Robert Mbui said the Wiper leader will only join Raila as an equal partner through a coalition.
“We are going as a coalition because we don’t want to be swallowed. We want to retain our identity. If we go and join blindly then we can lose even our support bases and that is what is important,” Mbui told The Star.
“We don’t want to join an umbrella that already has its owner. If we go and say we are just joining Azimio then it means we have relinquished our ambition which we cannot afford to tell our people,” Mbui added.
Kivumbi.co.ke is reliably informed that One Kenya Alliance has also demanded the running mate slot on top of other cabinet positions for them to join Azimio.
Speaking on the possibility of Kalonzo being offered the deputy president slot, Lugari MP Ayub Savula said it will be near impossible as the position is reserved for the Mt Kenya region.
“They wanted the DP slot but that is difficult because it has been given to Mt Kenya but there is an agreement on the sharing of the government and soon Kalonzo will join us and it will be the game-changer,” Savula told The Star.
The former vice-president is also pushing for the renaming of the coalition to be dubbed Azimio-One Kenya Alliance so as to mirror their partnership with Azimio la Umoja.
The Wiper leader is also insisting that President Kenyatta must spearhead the talks with Raila on what points to a high level of mistrust between Kalonzo and the ODM leader.
“I propose Mr. President that you take leadership of that coalition. I have been amazed by the strength of the three-legged stool, call it three-pillar Azimio- One Kenya alliance and we thank Jubilee for endorsing that proposal,” Kalonzo said during Jubilee NDC at KICC.
Political pundits opine that the push by OKA to unveil their presidential candidate despite initiating coalition talks with Raila is meant to increase pressure on President Uhuru and Raila to budge during negotiations.
