Kangema set for Mt Kenya face-off

By Francis Ngige

The date has been set for Kangema constituency by-election and indications are the replacement of late John Michuki will be a litmus test for Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta.

The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission on Tuesday announced the by-elections for Kangema together with those of Kajiado North and Ndhiwa constituencies would be held on September 17.

Kangema has been without an MP since February when Michuki, then the Environment minister, died at the Aga Khan Hospital in Nairobi, two days after arriving from the United Kingdom where he was undergoing treatment.

Uhuru launched The National Alliance Party in May and declared it his State House vehicle and already many of the aspirants have formed a beeline for the party.

But it will also be interesting to see whether Uhuru’s critic in Central Energy Minister Kiraitu Murungi will also field a candidate under the Alliance Party of Kenya Party, which he heads.  Murungu has vowed he would fight to ensure TNA does not eclipse his party.

The outcome of the by-election is likely to determine the voting pattern of the Mount Kenya region in the March 4 General Election.

The juicier part is that the constituency falls in Murang’a County, where presidential aspirant Peter Kenneth, who has declared his candidature on the Kenya National Congress Party, hails from.

Kenneth is taking a stab at the presidency against the Uhuru’s perceived political supremacy in Mount Kenya region. 

In a way, the by-election is expected to turn out to be a supremacy battle between Uhuru and Kenneth who are determined to show their might.

Then there is Narc-Kenya’s Martha Karua, who has refused to bow to pressure to have the region subscribe to one political party.

Karua has more than once dismissed the suggestion as repressive. On Monday, she declared democracy allows everyone to join the party of their choice.