Mudavadi: If we unite, we will beat Jubilee

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi is optimistic a united opposition will dislodge Jubilee from power next year.

Mr Mudavadi said corruption, political exclusion, sabotage of the Constitution and undermining devolution have become official policy under the Jubilee coalition.

The soft-spoken politician also hit out at President Uhuru Kenyatta, saying the Head of State knows how public resources are being plundered.

“I’m convinced President Uhuru knows who and how public resources are being plundered. The curious thing is he does nothing about it. I think the political bug has bitten him and it’s in his interest to let corruption reign as long as he’s re-elected,” said Mudavadi.

And now Mudavadi, who has been spearheading the formation of a super alliance, said the only way to ensure Jubilee only gets one term is for the Opposition, civil society, the business community and religious organisations among others to come together and rebuild the country.

Mudavadi, in an exclusive interview with The Standard, said although there are other good candidates who are ready to take on Mr Kenyatta in the next elections, he is the best and given an opportunity, he will not disappoint.

You are spearheading the formation of National Super Alliance (NASA), what is your view on the alliance and what do you seek to achieve?

Let me first introduce what NASA is. NASA is the formation of political and non-political forces in Kenya who feel and know that the country is being mismanaged by the Jubilee regime. Everything that could go wrong has gone wrong under Jubilee mismanagement. Corruption, exclusion, sabotage of the Constitution and undermining devolution has become official policy under Jubilee misrule.

NASA isn’t your usual coalition of political parties. Kenya has been “experimenting” with and second-guessing governance since introduction of multiparty through political parties and coalitions of convenience.

So NASA or Muungano Maluum is conceived as a mass movement of political parties, institutions, organised groups and individuals with the special purpose to remove Jubilee regime from power in the next election and provide alternative and accountable leadership. Unlike Jubilee, NASA-member political parties aren’t dissolving. They can join as coalitions or as individual parties.

You have asked me what NASA seeks to achieve. We aren’t hiding anything. NASA is bigger and wider than existing coalitions like CORD. It has broader goals and objectives in terms of membership and post-election agenda for Kenya. With the broad-based membership and cognisant of the Jubilee administration’s misrule and abdication of responsibility and collusion in runaway corruption, and dwindling state of Kenya’s economy, NASA seeks to be a special purpose vehicle to remove the Jubilee regime from office through democratic means and provide an accountable leadership that will restore hope in self-government among Kenyans.

In the event that NASA is formed, how do you prefer the coalition to pick its candidate? Through a contested nomination or boardroom deal?

Let’s not jump the gun. NASA is in its formative stages. You the media need to give us a break from the personification of politics in Kenya. The issue of selecting a candidate will take its natural course as we coalesce around the purpose and post-election NASA agenda.

If you are not NASA’s presidential candidate, would you be comfortable being the running mate?

Look, NASA is bigger than any one individual. I told a TV station this week that some of us think about Kenya and not ourselves. But you media keep pushing us to illusory contests. We want to keep our eyes on the NASA ball as a special purpose vehicle. Everyone in NASA must be convinced we either remove Jubilee or lose the country we love. I would be glad to lead NASA troops into victory in whatever capacity.

If you are not picked as the Alliance’s presidential candidate, will you stick to NASA?

It is very rare for a parent to disown a child, no matter the circumstances.

There are those critics who feel NASA is doomed to fail. What’s your take?

The cows don’t come home until they are driven there. An idea whose time has come can never be without sceptics. But what evidence of doom do they have? Only those in fear of NASA can predict doom. Prophets of doom are themselves doomed. We in Opposition are very optimistic. Indeed my brother Raila and I have been very explicit on NASA.

I said before at the burial of Funyula MP Paul Otuoma’s son last week that 2017 will be the year when things will change. We are talking and NASA is growing. We will use it to get rid of Jubilee and stop its leaders from stealing Kenyans’ money. We will use NASA to catch the thieves. Anybody who will be outside NASA will be part of Jubilee. They are the people we want to eject from office because they are stealing from Kenyans. Last week CORD leader Raila Odinga said the opposition was expanding and CORD will be part of the expanded opposition. “Those focusing on CORD alone are therefore missing the point. The opposition will present a single candidate and CORD will be part of that arrangement.”

Would you support a change of the elections date?

I have opposed machinations to change the elections date because it is part of a scheme to rig elections. Jubilee wants time for some corruption deals to mature. We can’t allow them that.

What do you have to say about the perception that Jubilee is almost assured of victory in next year’s elections?

Brother, you should have been at Bomet! The password was “NASA Jubilee!” The Jubilee tyranny of numbers, if there was any, is an illusion today. The 2017 elections are for the opposition to lose. That is why it is critical that we all come together under NASA.