Eyes on Kalonzo following G7 fall out

Written By:Simon Achola,    Posted: Fri, Feb 17, 2012

Kalonzo has been seen as an opportunist in the G7 political alliance (File Picture) Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka allies now say time is ripe for him to sell his presidential candidature without the tag of being labeled an opportunist. A meeting of Mps allied to the G7 alliance on Thursday in which the VP Kalonzo and his ardent allies were conspicuously absent served as the last nail on the coffin of his association with the group that has always had reservations about him. The G7 leaders are reportedly unhappy with Musyoka's brand of politics in which critics have dismissed him as an opportunist who hopes to benefit from the ICC trials should Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto be locked out of the presidential race. Kangundo Legislator Johnston Muthama said the move is just the latest in a trail of events aimed at sidelining the VP from the main arena of the 2012 general election politics a move he says is doomed to fail. According to Muthama the move was a well calculated move aimed at painting the VP as a person without any political clout and not fit for the presidency. The latest remarks by Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo, a Kalonzo's ally that the two cannot vie for presidency while facing charges at the ICC has only served to fuel suspicion in the G7 camp that actually Kalonzo's presence is suspect. Muthama termed Mutula's stand on ICC as personal saying they cannot be used to sideline the VP from the alliance. Muthama and Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni are some of the legislators said to have been relieved of their duties of planning the ongoing peace rallies for the Deputy Prime Minister and Eldoret north legislator William Ruto after their perceived stand on ICC. On Saturday the G7 alliance is expected to hold a rally in Nyandarua, but Muthama says Kalonzo Musyoka and his lieutenants will not attend. Kioni however says he will attend the rally purely to host the leaders as the leader of UDF party. Analysts say the latest development exposes Kalonzo Musyoka's underbelly and his perceived voting block of Eastern Province up for grabs for anyone who captures their imagination. Dr. Adams Oloo, a Political Scientist at the University of Nairobi says the latest development in G7 leaves Kalonzo with tough choices to make. Oloo further adds that the fallout was long coming due to what he calls as difference of ideologies. He says the latest events leaves the Eastern voting bloc up for grabs to any politicians who will resonate well with their needs.