Gatundu South race now a two-horse affair

Gatundu, Kenya: The battle for the Gatundu South parliamentary seat in the August 7 by-election is becoming a hard nut to crack for The National Alliance (TNA) candidate Moses Kuria whose rivals have now regrouped to front a single candidate.

The widow of former MP Joseph Ngugi, Joyce Wanjiku, who came second in the party primaries held last month and who has since pulled out of the race, and John Karing’u, who came a distant fourth, have resolved to back Kiarie Kamere, who will seek the seat on the New Democrats party ticket.

Mr Kamere said the move is driven by their belief that the primaries were not free and fair.

During last year’s General Election, Kamere lost to Joseph Ngugi (the late MP) in  the TNA nominations. He was later to emerge second when he opted to contest the seat on a Narc ticket.

Kuria has everything to worry about since Kamere now has the backing of Wanjiku and Kamere who command a significant following. The two contested the results of the party nominations which they claimed were rigged.

However, the tribunal headed by Faith Waigwa that had been formed by the party to probe the alleged malpractices, cleared Kuria of wrong doing, and said  tangible evidence had not been produced to support the allegations.

“As a tribunal, we find no enough evidence produced by the petitioner that meet the party’s threshold of reversing an election outcome,” Ms Waigwa said.

Kuria garnered 8,343 votes ahead of Wanjiku who got 6,685 votes in the June 23 nominations. Kamere garnered 2,353 votes while former civic leader John Karing’u got 1,811 votes.

Tribunal ruling

After the tribunal announced the verdict upholding Kuria’s nomination, Wanjiku initially announced that she may  participate in the by-election on another party’s ticket.

“I will go back to my supporters to decide. I’m not satisfied with the ruling by this tribunal,“ Wanjiku said at a press conference in Nairobi.

However, after consultations, she changed her mind and  bowed out of the race to support Kamere.

“I know I will hurt my supporters but I am left with no option but to gracefully pull out in order not to betray his (Ngugi’s) love for the party and the President whom he served diligently,” she said.

Already, her entire campaign team has decamped to Kamere’s camp where they have rolled out a massive network.

 

While announcing her withdrawal from the race at her Runda home last weekend, Wanjiku said that even though she got a raw deal from the party during the recent nominations, decamping to another party would be betraying her husband’s loyalty.

Wanjiku’s decision now transforms the by-election to a two-horse race. Paul Ndung’u, a political scientist, says the development will definitely make it tough for Kuria to get to Parliament. “Wanjiku and Kamere are no ordinarily players in the race. They have a lot of support and if they front one of them, Kuria’s quest for the seat will not be a walk in park,” he said.

Opinion on the ground is split. Some locals says they would prefer Kamere since they consider him a grassroots leader contrary to Kuria, who they claim mostly conducts his affair in the capital city.

They say Kuria has an edge in the race by the virtue of being the flag-bearer of TNA, which is the predominant party in the region.

“We believe our victory was stolen during the party primaries. The people of Gatundu South will have the final say at the ballot on August 7,” Kamere told a gathering at Kiganjo town recently.

Mr Kuria, however, insists that the nomination process was above board as it was conducted in a free and democratic manner. He has called upon his rivals to accept the results of the nominations, and adds that it reflects the will of the people.

“I urge them to join me and move the constituency to the next level in terms of development. I am ready to work with them for the benefit of the people, “Kuria said.

Pundits say Kuria has an edge in the race by the virtue of being the TNA ticket flag-bearer which is the predominant party in the region. They argue that Gatundu South residents may not want to vote for a candidate from another party because it could be misconceived as  embarrassing and defying President Kenyatta.

Several Kiambu MPs, among them Kigo Njenga (Gatundu North) and Alice Ng’ang’a (Thika), have indicated that they would support the TNA candidate.

One Kiambu MP who spoke anonymously said a team of  30 MPs from Central Kenya has been formed with clear orders to camp in the constituency and ensure they deliver the seat to TNA.

Opinion on the ground is divided over Kuria and Kamere’s candiature.  Some local people says they would prefer Kamere whom they are more familiar with. 

“Kamere is  more of a people’s person. He is regularly available in the constituency unlike Kuria. In fact, I was shocked to learn that Kuria comes from Gatundu South,” said James Kariuki, a resident.

On the other hand, others say Kuria would be of greater value  to TNA and  the Jubilee government because  he is vocal and a strong crusader of Uhuru’s causes.