Agriculture Minister Dr Sally Kosgei skipped Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s meeting in Kakamega only a day after she resigned from her position as Deputy Leader of Government Business without his approval.
She was conspicuously missing at the official opening of the controversial Butali Sugar factory despite it falling under her ministry. Dr Kosgei also Friday revealed why she quit the crucial position that she held courtesy of the Orange Democratic Movement party.
Other top ministry officials — among them the Assistant minister, the Permanent Secretary and the Director of Agriculture — gave the Butali function a wide berth.
It came a day after Rift Valley MPs led by suspended Higher Education minister William Ruto and Mr Henry Kosgey — who recently stepped aside from his Industrialisation ministry portfolio following abuse of office charges — were said to have finalised plans to ditch ODM.
Crucial reason
Yesterday, Dr Kosgei said she resigned as Deputy Leader of the Government Business in the House chiefly to concentrate on her duties as Agriculture minister, especially now that the country was facing serious drought.
Kosgei said most of her work in Parliament had confined her in the capital yet the bulk of her work was in the field.
"I want to be in the farms… I have not done that as much as I would have wanted," she said.
And then she gave what may perhaps be the far crucial reason: Political considerations.
"But then again," said Dr Kosgei, "Kenyan politics lack ideology and is highly regionalised… so if my people go up the hill, I also go up with them. Who am I to act in isolation?"
Kosgei, an experienced public servant — having served in senior positions in the Kanu regime, including as Head of Public Service and Secretary to the Cabinet — is known to weigh her words carefully.
Two families
Back in Kakamega North District, machines at the controversial Sh3.1 billion Butali Sugar Mills machines roared to life, six months after the scheduled commissioning date.
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| Butali Sugar Mill Managing Director Sanjay Patel, left, takes Prime Minister Raila Odinga on a tour of the factory, Friday. Agriculture minister Sally Kosgey snubbed the event. [PICTURE: BENJAMIN SAKWA/STANDARD] |
It was interesting to see Raila at the sugar firm, even after a watchdog under his office had earlier opposed its opening on grounds that it had not conformed with the law and had questioned how it had obtained its licence.
Raila yesterday distanced the Government from the factory’s woes, saying it started as differences between two family investors, and later spilled to the Kenya Sugar Board (KSB). The same family owns Butali and rival West Kenya sugar firms.
"KSB gave conflicting signals. They would come to the ground and say build the factory and then oppose it once in Nairobi," he added.
Raila exonerated Dr Kosgei from blame. "Kenya Sugar Board is to blame totally".
Turning to politics, the Prime Minister expressed confidence that he would win the 2012 presidential elections if ODM nominated him as its flag bearer.
The Prime Minister said only strong parties have a chance of forming the next Government after the next General Election, the first under the new Constitution that came into force last August.
He said time was up for small parties that were only popular in certain areas of the country, a veiled attack on parties such as Ford Kenya and New Ford Kenya.
"With the new Constitution, you will not see parties with two or three MPs in Parliament," he added.
The Prime Minister said it was for this that ODM had set the dates for grassroots elections. They will be held from March 5-8 at location, constituency and county levels, according to the party’s National Elections Board.
Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi reiterated Raila’s statement and said the country’s next president would have to come from a strong party.
Face the reality
"The prospects of you becoming the next president are zero if you are a member of a small party. We must face the reality," he said.
"I also want the top seat but I must go beyond Western to be sure of what I am doing," said Mudavadi.
He continued: "We must bring in other counties. I started long ago and I am still doing it. I will also need Raila’s vote at one point or another," he said.
Mudavadi said he would never ascend to the presidency if he depended on the support of the Luhya community alone.
County chairmen and mayors in the North Rift welcomed the move by the Rift Valley to ditch ODM.
The leaders also vowed to lead a mass exodus of their people at the grassroots from ODM, and asked officials not to bother defending their respective branch posts in the March elections.
They said their support for Raila had ‘come to an end’ and that MPs still in the Premier’s camp should prepare to be voted out come the next General Election.
The North Rift leaders included Wareng County Council chairman Paul Kiprop, Eldoret Mayor William Rono, Ezekiel Ruto (Nandi County Council), Simon Chepseba (Keiyo), William Chesingany (Marakwet) and Paul Mugun (Nandi Hills town council).
"We are now happy that our community is fully united. We support steps taken by ODM chairman Henry Kosgey to relinquish his post and also Dr Sally Kosgei’s resignation as Deputy Leader of Government Business in the House," said Kiprop.
Kiprop, the Eldoret East ODM treasurer, said he would not defend his seat at the forthcoming party polls because "we are moving en-masse to the United Democratic Movement (UDM)".
Using old grudges
"We also need to reconcile with Kanu because we should be one as a community. We also respect retired President Moi as our elder who can guide us and give direction for the community," he added.
Nandi’s Ezekiel Ruto said: "As residents of Aldai, we congratulate our MP (Dr Kosgei) for her move. We also urge Bureti MP Franklin Bett to decamp".
Without giving names, Chesingany claimed that the top ODM leadership was using old grudges to taint the Kalenjin community’s name by associating it with the post-election violence and corruption.
"We are a very hospitable community. We are now prepared to move out of ODM and solidify our unity and also seek support of other regions," said Chesingany.
Chepseba said the Prime Minister had failed to heed his supporters and people at the grassroots had all moved out of ODM and MPs had no option but to follow them.
Belgut MP Charles Keter was instrumental in bringing together ministers and MPs from the Rift Valley and MPs from North Eastern region at Henry Kosgei’s Westlands residence last Monday.
Keter is said to have mobilised and co-ordinated the function that for the very first time brought together MPs previously seen to be reading from different scripts.
Chepalungu MP Isaac Ruto and Cherang’any MP Joshua Kutuny rallied their colleagues to attend two separate meetings conducted the same day.
At around 8am, a group of MPs including Cabinet Ministers Dr Sally Kosgei, Samuel Poghisio, William Ruto, Adan Duale, Mohamud Mohamed, Chapalungu MP Isaac Ruto and Charles Keter drove into Kosgei’s residence.
Shortly thereafter, a number of United Democratic Movement (UDM) National Executive Council (NEC) members joined the MPs.
It is understood that the officials had the blessings of the party’s National Chairman Joseph Chirchir and Secretary-General Martin Kamwaro, both of who skipped the meeting.
- Reported by Andrew Kipkemboi, Allan Kisia, Titus Too and Vitalis Kimutai
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