By Vincent Bartoo
Fresh cracks have emerged in United Republican Party ( URP), with some supporters of Eldoret North MP William Ruto threatening to jump ship.
The wrangles saw some MPs skip a crucial fundraising meeting in Eldoret at the weekend.
At the centre of the controversy is a group of Ruto’s allies who are trying to elbow out sitting MPs in the race for URP tickets.
Two MPs, Chepalungu’s Isaac Ruto and Rongai’s Luka Kigen, are said to have threatened to quit the party for UDM or ODM.
The two have not been actively involved in URP campaigns as sources told The Standard disquiet in the party is heightening.
The sources said the Chepalungu MP was not happy with his Eldoret North counterpart and his allies for underrating him in South Rift politics.
Mr Kigen, on the other hand, suspects Ruto and allies are grooming former URP interim chairman Nixon Korir to unseat him in Rongai.
“As for Ruto (Chepalungu MP), it is almost certain he will be decamping to UDM. Ruto (Eldoret North MP) reconciled with Kigen and Korir, but the former is still not satisfied,” our sources said.
Last Friday, at a URP fundraiser in Eldoret where journalists were ejected from the meeting, the Eldoret North MP, URP chairman Francis ole Kaparo and Dujis MP Adan Duale hit hard at supporters for allegedly wrecking the party.
“This is the home of our party leader and you want to ruin things for him when other parts of the country are solidly behind him,” said a furious Kaparo. Duale questioned why URP officials in Rift Valley had allowed other parties to infiltrate the region and snatch supporters from the party. “In North Eastern, we will vote for URP as a bloc. But here, there is a problem. You need to consolidate support for our presidential candidate,” he said.
weakening party
