DEPUTY Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta will be the presidential candidate for the G7 Alliance in 2012 and Eldoret North MP William Ruto will be his running mate, according to multiple sources close to the two politicians. Kalonzo has been slated for the position of Leader of Majority in Parliament.
The G7 Alliance has now replaced last year's KKK Alliance between Uhuru, Ruto and Kalonzo. The alliance has now been given a broader national outlook by the inclusion in the G7 of Tourism minister Najib Balala, Saboti MP Eugene Wamalwa, Moyale MP Aden Dualle and former MP Omingo Magara. However what has now become Plan A is dependent on the International Criminal Court dropping charges against Ruto and Uhuru.
The initial discussions took place between their confidants but Ruto and Uhuru arrived at the informal understanding following discussions over the last month.
If the two are unable to contest because of the ICC, Plan B will be to back Eugene Wamalwa for president. They believe that Kalonzo does not enjoy sufficient support to defeat Raila if they are out of the race. They feel that Eugene can pick up enough votes in western Kenya to give him victory with their support.“The opinion polls are not lying and if you look at the way the new Uhuru has been received in Central Kenya and parts of the Nairobi and Rift Valley, there is no doubt in our mind that he is the best candidate," said a senior Cabinet minister close to Uhuru.“This issue has been discussed with people close to Ruto and some of them are in agreement that Ruto should be slotted for the position of Deputy President,” said the minister. Uhuru has been holding rallies in central Kenya where he has been highly critical of Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
The latest opinion poll released by Synovate on Friday showed that Raila was still the most popular candidate with 38 per cent support, although down from 42 per cent in December.
Uhuru had gained ground from 14 per cent in December to 18 per cent as did Ruto who was was preferred by 8 per cent of the 2,000 respondents, up from 4 per cent in December.
Some of Ruto’s supporters are however understood to be quietly unhappy with the arrangement and want Ruto to be the candidate because Uhuru had his chance in 2002.
Two weeks ago Ruto told Uhuru to his face during a rally in Bomet that he expected Uhuru to support him this time round since he supported him 2002.
In case the current plan to have Ruto run with Uhuru does not survive, another option will be for both of them to run independently for the presidency and consolidate support in their own backyards.
They believe that if they both vie for presidency independently, no candidate during the election, including Raila, would meet the constitutional threshold of a simple majority. This would force a re-run where the G7 members will could rally behind the candidate who gained the most votes during the first round, effectively defeating Raila.
Uhuru was born October 26, 1961. His initial entry into politics came through his election as the chairman of the Thika branch of the KANU ruling party 1997. He was nominated to Parliament in 2001 by retired President Daniel Moi who also made him Minister for Local Government despite his political inexperience.
Moi then single-handedly picked him as his successor in 2002 but he was comprehensively beaten by the then opposition leader Mwai Kibaki.
He subsequently became Leader of the Opposition in Parliament and made history in 2007 when he became the first Leader of official opposition to support a sitting president who was seeking re-election.
Following the disputed presidential election in 2007, President Kibaki rewarded Uhuru by naming him Deputy Prime Minister and allocating him the powerful Finance ministry in 2009. To his supporters Uhuru Kenyatta is a visionary leader. To his detractors the playboy is a reluctant politician.
According to Uhuru, "Growing up in the Kenyatta household taught us many things. My father taught us to treat everyone fairly. He taught us the essence of justice and fairness, he told us to learn from history but not to live in history." The Gatundu South MP went to St Mary’s school in Nairobi and then studied political science at Amherst College, USA.
Currently Uhuru is facing charges of crimes against humanity at the ICC following the post election violence. Ruto on the other part was born on 21 December 1966 in Kamagut, Uasin Gishu to the late Mzee Daniel Cheruiyot and Mama Sarah Cheruiyot. He attended Kerotet Primary School for his primary school education then joined Wareng Secondary School for his Ordinary Levels education before proceeding to Kapsabet Boys, Nandi for his Advanced Levels. He then went on to receive a degree in botany from the University of Nairobi in 1990
In 1992 Ruto became the Organising Secretary a Youth for Kanu '92 (YK92), a group that was formed to drum up support for President Moi in the election.
In 2002 Ruto campaigned for Uhuru but after they lost to President Kibaki, Ruto tried to take over Kanu. They both later teamed up with Raila and successfully campaigned against the proposed constitution in 2005.
Ruto was a member of the ODM Pentagon in 2007 but has since fallen out with Prime Minister Raila Odinga. Ruto is also facing charges of crimes against humanity in the ICC.
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