Kalonzo: I will be Ruto's biggest rival in 2027 presidential poll

Wiper leader and Azimio la Umoja Co-Principal Kalonzo Musyoka during an exclusive interview with The Standard on January 8, 2024. [Ndung'u Gachane, Standard]

Azimio la Umoja co-principal Kalonzo Musyoka has announced he will contest the presidency in the next elections, declaring he will not support any other candidate as has been the case in the past.

Kalonzo, the Wiper leader, said he will not back out of the 2027 presidential election, saying; “I will no longer support Raila or any other candidate.”

The former vice president, in 2013, 2017 and 2022, sacrificed his presidential ambitions to support Raila Odinga, the ODM leader.

His supporters have often raised concerns over his seriousness in going for the top seat after he, on several occasions, pulled out even after vowing not to do so. It is this flip-flopping that earned him the “watermelon” tag, to paint him as a person who can change positions anytime as long as it is convenient for him.

Man to watch

However, Kalonzo has told The Standard in an interview that he is the man  to watch ahead in 2027 as he will present President William Ruto with his biggest headache ever even as he will be seeking a second term.

To buttress his position, Kalonzo announced plans for early campaigns under the tag “Mapema ndio Best”.

“I will start my presidential campaigns later this month. I am imitating the Tanga Tanga team that was part of the Jubilee administration. Tanga Tanga leader was William Ruto. I loved their approach. They started campaigns early, against the government position, and scooped the coveted seat,” said Kalonzo.

He added: “After all is said and done, the Tanga Tanga movement was not a bad thing. It gave the country its current president.”

Kalonzo said he has summoned Wiper’s National Executive Committee (NEC) for a meeting on January 16 to discuss and lay plans for his candidature. “My presidential bid will be announced officially after that meeting, and then we will hit the ground running with church activities, public barazas and meet-the-people tours.”

National outfit

“We shall launch an all-out campaign using “Mapema ndio Best” slogan. This will come after we have re-branded our party to make it a national outfit to accommodate all candidates seeking elective positions in 2027,” Kalonzo said.

He added: “I am asking Kenyans to believe in my presidential candidature. I am going for it this time around. I am not dropping out of the presidential race.”

On those occasions when Kolonzo shelved his ambitions, he disappointed his supporters, most of whom often pushed him to go for the top seat.

Kalonzo is remembered for his public statement in 2021 when he declared; “I will be the most stupid person on earth to endorse Raila for the third consecutive time” then went ahead and did the exact opposite.

“For me, as of now, it is unthinkable that I, Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka, would support Raila Odinga for the third time…. I would be the most stupid fellow on earth to go and support — for the third time — a presidential candidate without a measure of reciprocity,” Kalonzo said then.

Ahead of the 2022 showpiece, Kalonzo went as far as picking a running mate, in Narok politician Andrew Ole Sunkuli, and the duo even presented their papers at the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), only for Kalonzo to back down at the eleventh hour to support Raila.

When Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka met with President William Ruto at Parliament buildings where they had gone to pay their respect to former President Mwai Kibaki. [PCS] 

Raila would pick Narc Kenya leader Martha Karua as his running mate. In this arrangement, had they formed government, Kalonzo would be Chief Minister in the Azimio la Umoja cabinet despite his desire to be the number two.

In the arrangement, former National Assembly Speaker Kenneth Marende would be Senate Speaker, while the Treasury CS would be former Kakamega governor Wycliffe Oparanya and the Lands docket would go to former Mombasa governor Ali Hassan Joho, among others.

In an interview with The Standard, Kalonzo has maintained Kenyans have every reason to trust him. He promised to put up a spirited campaign for his presidential bid akin to the anti-government meetings that were led by President Ruto, who was then President Kenyatta’s deputy.

“Kenyans must trust me, especially because they are the ones who are saying the country must go the ‘Kalonzo route’ this time.”

Asked what would be the fate of his ally Raila and their relationship should push through with his presidential idea, Kalonzo said: “You can’t continue doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.” 

He added: “Kenyans should, by now, be knowing who President Ruto’s main challenger in 2027 is. I am the one. Even the president himself announced my bid for the top seat recently.” “If Raila decides to vie for the presidency, it will be an exciting race. In 2022, I decided not to vie in favour of Raila, but I don’t expect any payback from him.”

“Nothing will stop me, not even Azimio member parties fielding candidates. Even if the presidential race is crowded, I will be in there. Even during the recent presidential election in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the field was crowded but the president was elected.”

Narc Kenya boss Karua has announced plans to field candidates in all elective positions, including that of president.

It was on November 16 last year, during a meeting attended by Karua, that Narc Kenya announced it would field a presidential candidate in 2027. Jubilee party has insisted that Raila is still Azimio’s favourite candidate in 2027 unless he decides otherwise.

The Azimio allied parties have been strategizing ahead of the next polls, which has included recruiting new members.

Kalonzo maintained there is nothing wrong with listing new members as it will strengthen the coalition.

Terrible philosophy

In yet another indication all is not well in the Azimio coalition, Kalonzo dismissed the move by Karua and Jubilee secretary-general Jeremiah Kioni to establish the “Kamwene group” which he described as a terrible political philosophy that is against the main objective of Azimio.

Azimio Principals Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka at Kamukunji rally on January 23, 2023. [Samson Wire,  Standard]

“I would advise my sister and those who have come up with the group to leave it so we can stick together and remain true to the agenda of Azimio. Just like in Kikuyu, the meaning of the word in Kikamba is individualism which will work against our unity of purpose,” he said.

On the National Dialogue Committee (Nadco) he co-chaired and faced opposition from some Azimio leaders, including Karua who termed it a fraud, Kalonzo defended its report saying most (70 per cent) of the opposition’s demands were addressed.

Karua, on December 6, termed the report a ‘fraud’ and urged Kenyans to reject it, stating it did not address key issues that forced Kenyans to take to the streets after the elections.

According to Karua, the report failed to address three key issues the Azimio coalition had raised - the high cost of living, an audit of the 2022 general election results, and respect for political parties and multiparty democracy.

“While concluding in the Nadco report, we have to say it has done nothing to alleviate the suffering of citizens but it offers goodies to the leadership. This is unacceptable. It is a fraud against Kenyans. It should be frowned upon and rejected. It is a distracting national smokescreen,” Karua said.

However, Kalonzo, while admitting that both parties did not agree on how to tackle the high cost of living, they agreed on the IEBC reforms such as auditing the 2022 elections and the reconstitution of IEBC commissioners.

Reached consensus

Among other issues Kalonzo said the talks team reached a consensus on are amendment of Article 103 of the Political Parties Act to instil discipline by stopping party hopping, anchoring the National Government-Constituency Development Fund into the constitution, establishing the office of the Opposition and that of Prime Cabinet Secretary into the constitution, among others.

“Before the end of this month, we agreed that Speakers of both houses will summon members for a special sitting to adopt the Nadco report and start the implementation of its recommendations. Each side (the government and the opposition) will pick audit firms of their choice to audit the 2022 elections,” Kalonzo said.

He said while it is the citizens’ right to picket and demonstrate in the streets, the Azimio fraternity should change its strategy on how to pressure the government to lower the cost of living and address other concerns of Kenyans.

“If they can teargas a cake and innocent people whose only mistake was gathering to celebrate Raila’s birthday, what can’t they do to people on the streets?” he said.

Managing debts

Kalonzo criticized Ruto’s policies on managing debts and his style of leadership saying; “He is gradually turning into a tyrant, especially in his war against the Judiciary’s independence”.

“He is causing Kenyans a lot of pain by burdening them with taxes in the pretext of paying the loans. When the country is in distress you can’t over-tax the middle class,” he said.

He said the government should have sought rescheduling and renegotiating the commercial debts to remove the country from the economic hole it has found itself in.

“As a result of bad policies, over 6,000 companies have migrated from the country due to the weakening of shilling while the repayment of SGR has shot to Sh14 billion in accrued interest,” Kalonzo said.

On Ruto’s claims that his agenda was being delayed by corrupt judges, Kalonzo said democracy was under threat and challenged the president to be explicit on his claims against the judiciary instead of blanket condemnation.

“The executive has already captured legislature and it now wants to capture the judiciary by intimidating and threatening it so he can have his way on punitive taxes,” Kalonzo said.