By Anderson Ojwang
On 15th October 2023, at Jaramogi Oginga Odinga University of Science and Technology ground in Bondo, Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka, as the chief guest to a function, failed to seize the opportunity to run with the political baton.
The historic event, the 80th birthday of the late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga’s eldest son and Siaya senator, Dr Oburu Oginga, was a golden moment for Kalonzo to inherit Azimio La Umoja leader Raila Odinga’s vote bloc.
After the 2022 presidential election, Raila had indicated that he may not contest again for the presidency, and this provided Kalonzo with the opportunity to galvanise the coalition and inherit the ODM leader’s vote bloc.
At the function, Oburu told the gathering that “Kalonzo had stood with us three times and at the opportune time we should also support him. He is a good person.”
At the same function, Raila warned President Ruto to stop belittling Kalonzo and accused him of trying to divide the coalition through unfounded speculations, adding that the flag bearer for the group would be announced at the opportune time.
“He is speaking about Kalonzo as if they are equals. Kalonzo is far better than him, Ruto. He wants to divide us with talk about who will run for the presidency, yet we ourselves have not announced anything. We will show him he knows nothing, we will stand with Kalonzo because he is an honest person,” he said.
Kalonzo said then that the person who will face President Ruto in the next election will have a walkover because Kenyans are already fed up with the Kenya Kwanza regime.
But instead of Kalonzo reading and taking cue from the positive gesture from the Odinga family, he went into a political slumber, left the coalition to disintegrate and has never visited Nyanza to seek their support.
Raila’s running mate, Martha Karua, was the first to walk out of the coalition and declared her intent to run for the presidency in the 2027 presidential contest.
Kalonzo later declared the coalition as dysfunctional and not a possible vehicle to be used in the next presidential race.
Kalonzo said they will not rebrand the Azimio coalition but rather form a new political outfit.
He said the coalition had become dysfunctional as members were pulling out and that he was reorganising his party.“Azimio is dysfunctional. We are consulting, but clearly we can’t go into the next election as Azimio. We are actively consulting and reorganising,” he said then.
Kalonzo instead entered into a political pact with the impeached Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who he expects to support his bid. For the last one month, Gachagua has been in the USA; Kalonzo has failed to tour the country while the latter’s party, DCP, has been holding rallies.
President Ruto took the opportunity to woo Raila into a broad-based government during the anti-Finance Bill demonstrations.
It is through Oburu that President Ruto lured Raila into the broad-based government, and currently, the President is gaining through the association by making inroads into the ODM leader’s vote basket.
Raila recently declared he will support President Ruto up to 2027 and after that they will have another consultation.
Before President Ruto unveiled the broad-based cabinet, Kalonzo said a section of the constituent parties, namely the Wiper Democratic Movement (WDM), Jubilee Party, DAP-Kenya Party, Party of National Unity (PNU), and Narc-Kenya, would not participate in nor support the Kenya Kwanza-led Broad-Based Government of National Unity.
“We shall not join for the straightforward reason that such actions are a betrayal of the ideology, values, and tenets of both our coalition party and our constituent parties. Should any of our members opt to join the proposed Kenya Kwanza-led Broad-Based Government of National Unity, we shall not be a party to that decision.”
But President Ruto has managed to snare into his fold Raila’s closest lieutenants led by Oburu, Mama Ida Odinga, Joe Ager, whom Ruto appointed to his council of economic advisors, Dr Adams Oloo, Eng Carey Orege, Jaoko Oburu, whom he appointed as adviser, economic empowerment and sustainable livelihoods.
Also in the fold are ODM national chairperson Gladys Wanga, Minority Leader in Parliament Junet Mohammed, MPs Opondo Kaluma, Dr Lilian Gogo, Rosa Buyu, among others.
The cabinet secretaries, John Mbadi, Opiyo Wandayi, Wycliffe Oparanya and Hassan Joho, and the permanent secretaries.
Raila has defended his decision to politically cooperate with Ruto, emphasising that post-election reconciliations are essential for national unity.
He stated that after elections, it is crucial for leaders to “shake hands” to foster peace and stability, underscoring his commitment to reconciliation regardless of electoral outcomes.
“We can compete very fiercely, but at the end of it all, people must shake hands and life must continue. That is how democracies are built,” said Raila.
Recently, when the ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna dismissed the memorandum of understanding, terming it as dead, Oburu, Wanga and Junet came out guns blazing.
Wanga said, “I am the national chairperson of ODM. Our leader is Raila, we know him and he has never lied to us. In March this year, we went to KICC and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) for a broad-based government.
We are in a broad-based government and as the national chairperson, I want to say here, someone talking contrary to the party position is not talking on behalf of the party.
He will need to explain to the party who has sent him.”
Junet Mohammed said, “I am the Minority Leader in Parliament, we are in a broad-based government. We don’t want confusion. We want development from this government.
It is not time to make noise but to benefit from development. Party position on the MOU remains valid and that Central Committee is the organ that mandated for the MOU.
We agreed in the committee for the signing of the MOU. If you want the MOU dead, kindly bring it back to Central Committee so that we can deliberate and declare it is dead.
We will not allow it to die. We cannot allow someone to remove us from the broad-based government through unorthodox means. Where do you want us to go to? If you are tired, you are free to leave. At this moment, we are in broad-based government.”
While Ruto is busy endearing himself to Raila’s vote bloc, Kalonzo is yet to visit Nyanza and other regions where the former PM controls.
Kalonzo’s missed opportunities are turning out to be Ruto’s gains.
