Crash shattered Saitoti's planned London trip

The strength of his campaign, which many pundits had underrated, would have taken shape from August when he planned to officially launch his presidential bid, says Kamanda.

Secrets of the unseen power of Saitoti’s political machine began to spill just after his death when former President Daniel Moi revealed he was working to boost the late minister’s candidature.

Election plan 

“I was trying to help him fight for presidency especially in the Rift Valley. We have been talking regularly,” Moi revealed on Wednesday.

The revelation of Saitoti’s 2013 election plan is a pointer to a strong election strategy whose outcome would have been very interesting to watch.

Peter ole Sapalan, a close associate of the late Saitoti, said they were to meet Kalenjin professionals today in an elaborate political plan he was laying to make inroads in the Rift Valley. On Monday, Saitoti was set to meet a group of leaders from Meru to finalise arrangements for political rallies in various parts of the Eastern region, which he had set for Wednesday.

“We planned a robust political campaign that would have shocked this country and those who doubted him. Death indeed is a cruel robber,” Sapalan said.

Sapalan escaped death narrowly after the police chopper he had moved to after Saitoti asked him to swap places with  Public Works Minister Chris Obure crashed in Kapsabet in May 2009.

On Saturday after Saitoti jetted back to Nairobi from Mombasa, he called Sapalan, who had travelled to Kilgoris asking whether he could accompany him to Ndhiwa for a funds drive at Orwa Ojode’s rural home.

“It was late on Saturday and I told him it would be difficult since they were to leave by 8am,” said Sapalan. But Sapalan still left Kilgoris early, trying to dash to Nairobi to link up with the minister.

He however still arrived late only to hear that Saitoti and his Assistant Minister Ojode had been killed in a helicopter crash