Coast MPs warm up to Ruto party

By Nation Team newsdesk@ke.nationmedia.comPosted Sunday, January 16 2011 at 19:03

Several leaders are warming up to UDM in readiness for the 2012 General Election.

Public Health and Sanitation assistant minister Samuel Kazungu Kambi said the new Constitution currently bars him from jumping ship, but he would defend his Kaloleni seat on a UDM ticket when the right time comes.

“There is no doubt about it, come 2012 that is our political tool. Other political parties belong to shrewd and untrustworthy leaders. It is better to work with a snake to achieve development than such people,” he said.

Mr Kazungu added that he and other Coast leaders would work with Deputy Prime Minister and Finance minister Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto.

“As young leaders, we need our party to decide our issues and we are not even interested in political parties. Our interest is development,” he added.

He was speaking during a meeting by the MPs at Whitesands Hotel in Mombasa.

Gender minister Naomi Shaban who attended the meeting called for unity among Coast residents before deciding their support for Mr Ruto.

“Even if we need Ruto to be the President, we must first elect quality leaders and not weak ones. We must also end disunity and find the root of our problems and solutions,” she said.

The Taveta MP said the majority of residents were carried away by the ODM wave in the 2007 General Election and currently felt abandoned.

“We, in Taveta, decided to remain with President Kibaki because of his development record. Now President Kibaki is retiring and it is time for us to decide,” she said.

Former Kisauni MP Anania Mwaboza, who organised the weekend meeting dubbed ‘Coast UDM grassroots consultative meeting’, said they would join Mr Ruto’s party.

Mr Ruto asked Coast residents to support him. At the same time, Finance assistant minister Oburu Oginga asked disgruntled Rift Valley MPs to quit ODM and seek re-election on a different party.

“It’s ironical for the Rift Valley MPs opposed to ODM to continue earning salaries and privileges in the name of the party that they have already indicated they want to ditch. Let them swallow the humble pie and seek fresh mandate on a different party,” Dr Oginga said.

ODM still enjoyed unwavering support from Rift Valley, he said, despite perceived feuds between the PM and Mr Ruto. The Bondo MP was speaking at the weekend in Siaya District during the burial of Mr Vitalis Atieno Odok.

Elsewhere, Immigration Minister Otieno Kajwang’ has criticised a section of the media for allegedly being used to bring down ODM. “Let them not use the media to settle political scores with Raila and ODM,” he said.

Mr Kajwang’ asked those dissatisfied with ODM to quit. “ODM is a mass movement and does not belong to an individual or a community,” he said.

Reported by Galgalo Bocha, Eric Oloo and Maurice Kaluoch