Tension as internal wrangles rock ruling Jubilee coalition

President Uhuru Kenyatta flanked by Cabinet Secretary for Devolution and Planning Ann Waiguru and NYS director Nelson Githinji inspect the ongoing clean-up exercise by the National Youth Service at Kibera, Nairobi County.

The ruling Jubilee coalition is embroiled in behind-the-scene struggles pitting members of the two main parties; The National Alliance (TNA) and United Republican Party (URP) against each other.

And although President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William (DP) Ruto have a cordial relationship, their troops are involved in fierce political undercuts with each side accusing the other of political mischief.

Highly placed sources in the Jubilee coalition told The Standard on Saturday that members of URP believe Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto is enjoying the support of crucial figures within TNA in a bid to check DP's influence in the vote rich Rift Valley.

Specifically, some URP MPs close to Ruto believe the move by the Bomet governor is a politically-sponsored supremacy battle between him and the DP which some TNA bandwagons support. Sources close to the Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto warn of a looming strike within the party.

"The DP should tame his dogs from barking all over the place. He should realise this will cost him politically. You cannot separate Aden Duale from the DP. It is sickening that he was even smiling after the heated confrontation between the two," Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter said.

Shameful and horrible

Recently, Majority Leader Duale launched an attack on the Bomet governor which attracted condemnation and celebrations in equal measure. Duale is close to the DP and is always in the front line to defend his political interests.

However, many TNA MPs are uncomfortable with the Majority Leader, who they accuse of championing URP's interests to the detriment of the coalition partner TNA. Indeed, TNA MPs who spoke to The Standard on Saturday criticised Duale's attack on Governor Ruto.

Kajiado West MP Moses Ole Sakuda said: "What Duale did is shameful. It is horrible and uncalled for. These are people from URP tainting the image of the coalition. Even if one has made a mistake, it is important to solve it amicably. What Duale has been doing is just too much power getting into his head. Let us sober up and discuss our issues."

But Duale denied any tension in Jubilee, claiming that Governor Ruto is working for forces outside Jubilee. He said: "There is no tension in Jubilee. My loyalty is to the President and his deputy. URP or the DP are not scared about Isaac Ruto's activities. His crowning is not different from that which has been done to other people. Even presidential candidates like former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, James Kiyapi and Abduba Dida were also crowned as Kispigis elders. The truth is that the political bill of quantities of Isaac Ruto can only build a stalled Makuti house."

Poor counsel

Governor Ruto, however, told The Standard on Saturday that he would not be cowed by comments of his colleagues in URP. Ruto said the DP is receiving poor counsel from people claiming to be his friends.

"I would advise them that the best way to tame me is to accept issues we have raised as governors. There is absolutely no need of making it an Isaac Ruto affair. The DP should be careful with a section of leaders who claim to be his friends. Duale not only tarnished my name but that of my own mother and other mothers across the country. I will still move to court to sue him. URP or no URP, decency and decorum in public must be maintained," he said.

The internal tensions within URP and between TNA and URP have grown to an extent where some MP's are now demanding that DP  intervenes to calm the situation. The push for referendum is at the centre of the struggle especially within URP as the DP fight off Governor Ruto's efforts to galvanise governors in his support.

"I am not really aware if TNA are unhappy but if they are, then it doesn't come as a surprise...It is clear that our leadership in URP is Kangaroo style. We have to advise the DP on who to walk around with," said Keter.

Kuresoi South MP Zakayo Cheruiyot said the level to which the tension in URP has gone in regard to the referendum is such that trouble is inevitable in the party leadership if consultations are not undertaken.

"Only the DP will have to deal with whatever the outcome," said the former powerful permanent secretary during the Kanu regime.

Leaders close to the Bomet Governor have singled out Duale as being responsible for the growing rebellion in the Rift Valley region; URP's stronghold. The Majority Leader is accused of fuelling the rebellion by attacking the region's leaders.

Biggest headache

University of Nairobi lecturer and political analyst Dr Adams Oloo described Governor Ruto as the biggest headache for the DP. "At face value, whoever attacks Isaac gets consent from the Deputy President. Remember when the backyard is unhappy then it is a big problem for the party," he said.

Whereas Githunguri MP Njoroge Baiya admitted presence of tension between the two Rutos on one hand and between the Bomet governor and Duale on the other, he dismissed the tensions as being about individuals.

Baiya said the struggle is more about political space in the populous Rift Valley region and not an issue between TNA and URP. "The truth of the matter is that this is a battle for strong political persuasion. It is a showdown. Both Rutos come from the same area and they also know whatever they do or say has political implications," said Baiya.

Politically irrelevant

A source close to the Deputy President said his allies are not treating the crowning of Governor Ruto earlier this week in his Bomet County as politically irrelevant.
Kipsigis, the sub-tribe Governor Ruto hails from, is the most populous of all the Kalenjin-speaking sub-tribes. The Deputy President is from Nandi.

Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, a close ally of the Deputy President accused Governor Ruto of being abrasive and confrontational.

A highly placed source told The Standard on Saturday that some politicians are being left out of political rallies attended by the President to avoid the kind of "drama" witnessed between Duale and Governor Ruto.