Gichugu MP Martha Karua is full of confidence and promises a bigger shocker in the 2012 presidential elections.
She jetted back last Wednesday with a strong message: "Do not try to dirty our win".
Ms Karua had left the country immediately after her party bagged the Juja and Makadara by-election seats but returned 24 hours later to savour the victory.
The consternation from the results is still being felt across the political landscape, with Party of National Unity (PNU) being the most affected.
In an interview with The Standard, Karua demanded for respect from other parties and declared her commitment to be Kenya’s next chief executive after President Kibaki.
"I am telling our opponents not to ever try to dirty the win by Narc-Kenya and its candidates. Don’t you ever try to downplay it because it is of great significance now and in 2012," said Karua.
She spoke at Narc-Kenya headquarters in Hurlingham, Nairobi, where excited senior party leaders had gathered to receive Juja MP-elect William Kabogo and his Makadara counterpart Gidion Kioko Mbuvi a.k.a Mike Sonko.
favourite figure
Sitting in her office, in the quiet neighbourhood of the Department of Defence headquarters and radiating confidence, Karua exhibits the grit of a favourite figure in Kenyan politics.
"Narc-Kenya has said for the umpteenth time, we are not interested in political alliances. We once went into an alliance and got burned," said Karua.
During the by-election, it had been rumoured that operatives led by acting Chief Whip Johnstone Muthama made futile attempts to stop Karua from fielding candidates to boost chances for PNU candidates.
Asked if it was true, Karua frowned and stated emphatically she had not held any formal discussion over any issue with PNU leaders since she resigned from Government.
She looked disturbed and slighted that such a question could be raised when she had not even met President Kibaki face to face from the time she walked out of his Government.
o recent statistics from pollsters like Synovate and Infotrak Harris, Karua said she had noted their findings but with misgivings.
She said: "I have seen what some polls say, but I want to say there are indicators which show some of them are not authentic and I will not be discouraged by polls made with certain objectives in mind."
The former minister singled the polling done immediately after the referendum, which she claimed were designed to take away space Narc-Kenya and herself gained after the "Yes" victory.
Despite the not-so-encouraging results for Karua in the polls survey, the Gichugu MP insists she will not be discouraged by anybody.
"We always put feelers out there during our visits in various parts of the country to gauge the public mood and I can assure our supporters it is very encouraging," said Karua.
And to the just concluded by-elections, she rated her chances in 2012, as "very viable" despite the discouraging opinion polls.
"I think in the light of our good showing in the by-elections and other indicators, I rate my chances as very viable," said Karua.
enormous resources
How about the talk around town that Mr Kabogo and Mr Mbuvi used enormous resources to win their seats and that could, therefore, not reflect the strength of Narc-K and her clout?
On this, Karua tells critics to be objective and stop speaking out of sour grapes because they lost.
Had Narc-K candidates lost, Karua is sure nothing would have been said of them.
"I want to say without batting an eyelid that the candidates supported by the parties in power — the coalition parties — not only used more resources than our candidates but also misused public resources," said Karua.
To justify her claim, she pointed out that Government ministers used official vehicles in Juja, Starehe and Makadara with one flaunting a ministerial flag on his car allegedly to peddle influence. The former Justice Minister says Narc-Kenya candidates used their own hard earned resources unlike rivals from PNU and ODM, who allegedly exploited Government resources.
"And you can see for yourself who was involved in the campaigns. In Makadara, it was Prime Minister Raila Odinga himself, while in Juja, it was the Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta on the campaign trail," said Karua.
In the Juja, Karua also lists Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, who she claims landed in the area in a chopper and a host of assistant ministers. "In Thika, the Vice-President even used a chopper during the campaigns although he parked it far away, but we saw it," says Karua.
The Narc-K leader is confident her party would, against all odds win, the next presidential and parliamentary elections.
public resources
She said in Thika, Kabogo had complained the Government was using DCs to campaign for the PNU candidate.
"My point is any objective person should focus on irregular activities during the campaigns, notably the misuse of public resources and civil servants," said Karua.
To her, that is what should be considered irregular and not the use of billboards by Mbuvi in Makadara as alleged by some quarters.
"Yes, and if they are saying our candidate used billboards, I saw very huge boards in Thika, so why these double standards?" she said.
She says the use of such resources demonstrates prowess and it was also a plus for the party.
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