By Standard Team
Mr William Ruto and MPs allied to him have found a party to decamp to and set the stage for their resignation or expulsion from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM).
It is a strategy that could either condemn them to political oblivion, or rejuvenate Rutoâs presidential campaign. Eldoret North MP William Ruto after a meeting with legislators allied to United Democratic Movement party in Nairobi on Tuesday. [Photo: Mbugua Kibera/Standard]
Rutoâs new outfit, the United Republican Party, was just registered recently and is unknown even in his backyard of Eldoret North.
The former minister and his supporters who are still technically members of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) plan to announce their move tomorrow. And it comes fresh on the heels Rutoâs disastrous attempt to take over another party, the United Democratic Movement ( UDM). Section 17 and sub-sections (3) and (4) prohibit members of a party from joining, forming or helping to form another party while still a member of a different party.
It also bars them from publicly advocating for the formation of another political party before resigning from their party. The exception is only in regard to a party that is a corporate member of another party.
In the past, Ruto and his team had argued that attempts to expel them for supporting UDM breached Section 17 of the Act, as it was a corporate member of ODM. This is clearly not the case anymore.
Three scenarios now prevail.
Ruto and his rebel ODM MPs can resign en masse from ODM and forfeit their Parliamentary seats. Secondly, ODM can expel them; in both cases, this would trigger by-elections in their constituencies.
Political career
Third, ODM can refuse to expel the rebels, forcing them to either resign or remain in limbo.
