Uhuru chairs inaugural Azimio One Kenya Council meeting

President Uhuru Kenyatta chaired the inaugural Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Council meeting as he steers his succession.

The meeting centered on finding the most suitable running mate candidates for Azimio presidential candidate Raila Odinga and putting in place systems that will ensure smooth operations of the coalition.

With his exit from the seat of power imminent in less than four months, the Head of State and his handshake brother Mr Odinga seem to have set in motion events that will see the President wield power in the coalition party, long after his retirement.

Key among them was the formation of a 12-member council populated with loyalists to run the party affairs. The council is the party’s top decision-making organ.

Out of the remaining ten council members, Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka sits at the top of the structure followed by Kanu chairman Gideon Moi, governors Charity Ngilu (Kitui) and Ali Hassan Joho (Mombasa), Narc Kenya leader Martha Karua, DAP-Kenya leader Wafula Wamunyinyi and Abdi Noor Omar Farah.

Others are Members of Parliament, Sabina Chege (Murang’a) and Naomi Shaban (Taveta). Mr Odinga’s key ally, Junet Mohamed, will also sit in as a Council Member.

At the helm of the council is President Kenyatta, who will be chair. He is expected to offer guidance derived from the political wisdom he has soaked from former President the late Daniel Moi, former President Mwai Kibaki and through his ten-year stint as Head of state.

This means that despite Mr Odinga being the Azimio leader and flag bearer, Mr Kenyatta commands influence and will have a say in the distribution of slots in government.

The President will be in charge of leading the council in governance of the coalition, issuance of policy direction, admission of other members, and execution of coalition instruments.

He is also responsible for the formulation of principles to guide the organisation of government, while making sure there is equity, fairness and transparency among coalition partners.

Since more than 15 out of the 26 parties in Azimio signed a pact with Jubilee Party, means that they entrusted him to be their lead negotiator within the coalition’s power structure.

Pundits argue the appointment of the immediate former Jubilee Secretary General Raphael Tuju - whose reputation is the President’s ‘Mr fix it’ - as executive director of the National Coalition Executive Council speaks volumes.

Political analyst Tom Mboya is unconvinced that Mr Kenyatta is trying to succeed himself, noting that only time would tell.

“We are unused to former heads of state being active in politics, so what only time will tell is the extent to which President Uhuru will remain active by virtue of his position within the coalition political party,” said Mr Mboya.

“It is not that he will succeed himself because there will be a new president after the elections because it is a constitutional dictate,” he added.

He said that the notion of Uhuru “succeeding himself” came up because this will be the first election with such a coalition party structure as witnessed in Azimio within the confines of the law.