NAKURU: The United Republican Party (URP) MPs have told off their counterparts in the The National Alliance Party over threats to eject National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale from the position.
Kuresoi South Zakayo Cheruiyot added his voice to the raging debate between URP and TNA members in the Jubilee coalition over the plot by leaders from Central Kenya censure Duale following the killing of 12 quarry workers in Mandera three weeks ago who hailed from Nyeri.
Cheruiyot said any move to oust Duale from the position amount to an affront against Deputy President William Ruto and his URP brigade.
"The TNA wing of the Jubilee coalition has over and over again made attempts to undermine URP. But this time around we will not allow them to run over us with this issue about Duale. They should let URP to deal with the matter internally," said Cheruiyot.
The former powerful Internal Security Permanent Secretary told a church congregation in his Kuresoi South constituency that 'enough was enough' saying URP was getting a raw deal in the coalition.
"They have targeted our people in the war against corruption, they have told us to leave URP and join Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP) and now they want to remove Duale... We cannot allow them to continue running over us like this," he said.
Cheruiyot's remarks came hot on the heels of claims by Kericho Senator Charles Keter and Ainamoi MP Benjamin Langat who vowed to mobilize URP members in the Jubilee coalition to vote against any censure motion which will be brought against Duale.
Keter said they were not worried by the censure motion adding that it will be dealt with accordingly when it arises.
"There should be no worries regarding attempts to kick out Duale. We are sure that if the censure motion comes we shall deal with it," he said.
Langat said that while he understood the anger by TNA MPs from Nyeri, Mr Duale should not be their target.
"We do understand their emotions because they lost their people (in Mandera attacks) but what is coming out with the censure motion is that those are individual sentiments. No one should try to touch Duale," he said.
In past few weeks, members of parliament from Central Kenya have been up against Duale following the killing of 12 people in Mandera who hail from Nyeri.
Kieni MP Kanini Kega has drafted a censure motion against Mr Duale, which has received the support of majority MPs from TNA wing of the Jubilee coalition.
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Leaders from Nyeri have accused Duale of failing to honour a pledge to expose financiers of Al-Shabaab activities in northeastern Kenya.
In April this year, Duale had made the promise after the attack on Garissa University College over two months ago which left 148 dead, majority of whom were students.
The Garissa Town MP has, however, moved to mobilize URP MPs from the Rift Valley to vote out the intended motion saying it will create animosity within the Jubilee coalition.
It is understood that URP MPs have warned that the future of the Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP) which President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto want to use in the next election will be in jeopardy if the censure motion is brought against Duale.
Although both Kenyatta and Ruto have been silent over the issue, URP leaders have come to the defence of Duale saying they would oppose the censure motion.
Three weeks ago eight MPs from Nyeri County gave Duale seven days to produce the list he publicly declared he would give.
The leaders made good their threats to rile a censure motion to discuss Duale's conduct and in addition to removing him from the leadership after he failed to produce the list.
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