Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi's dilemma seems to have deepened as some Western MPs remain noncommittal about backing his presidential bid if he leaves ODM. The Sabatia MP is also uncertain whether the G7 alliance will back his candidacy.
Mudavadi was widely expected to have jumped out of the ODM following weeks of intense wrangling. Mudavadi's allies were confident that he would leave the party which he has accused of being dictatorial.
Since Monday this week, Mudavadi has been holding consultative meetings with various groups and advisers. He met with Western Kenya MPs and professionals at the Landmark Hotel in Nairobi on Tuesday and is expected to meet with civic leaders, community elders and other regional leaders at Kakamega this weekend.
Initially, the meeting was to culminate in a rally where Mudavadi was expected to make a major announcement. His spokesman Kibisu Kabatesi said there will be no rally. “These are weighty matters and cannot be rushed," Mudavadi close ally Hamisi MP George Khaniri said when asked to comment on why Mudavadi had yet to quit the ODM and where he was headed.
He said Mudavadi was getting conflicting advise. "There are those who argue that he has invested too much in ODM to leave it without a fight. They want him to fight for his democratic right within ODM. Then there are those who feel that he is getting a raw deal and should leave. It is a consultative process aimed at achieving consensus,” said Khaniri.
Mudavadi’s dilemma seems to have been compounded by Justice Minister Eugene Wamalwa’s insistence that he will also be in the presidential race thereby denying him the crucial Bukusu vote.
Mudavadi is aware that in a scheme to discredit him, allies of Prime Minister Raila Odinga might once again resurrect his alleged involvement in the Goldenberg scandal which occurred during his watch as Finance minister under President Moi.
Yesterday, Vihiga MP Yusuf Chanzu dismissed suggestions that Mudavadi was facing a revolt within some of the leaders from the region. He said "there is no rush for Mudavadi to make a decision as the elections are far away, either this December or March next year!" The IEBC has said the elections will be held in March after the two principals — President Kibaki and PM Raila — failed to agree on a date.
The chairman of the Luhya Council of Elders John Wangamati has said the decision on whether Mudavadi stays or leaves the ODM should be left to them. On Wednesday, the elders met with Raila who appealed to them to prevail on Mudavadi not to defect.
Yesterday, 12 ODM MPs from Western Kenya pleaded with Mudavadi not to quit the party. The MPs urged Mudavadi to be wary of a plot by those outside of the party to "hoodwink" him into leaving the party only to isolate him after he does so.
The MPs' statement, which was read on their behalf by Planning minister Wycliffe Oparanya, said the issue of how ODM will nominate its presidential candidate should not divide Raila and Mudavadi since the national executive council has already given consent for the amendment of the contentious article.
Soon afterwards, Housing minister Soita Shitanda dismissed the press conference as being "stage-managed". Shitanda who is the chairman of New Ford Kenya said he backs Mudavadi's presidential ambitions.
"Why can't the MPs be frank and tell us what they discussed in the Prime Minister's office in the morning before they were tasked to hold the press conference?" Shitanda said. He claimed some of those who addressed the press conference had been promised ministerial positions by the PM at the expense of Mudavadi's presidential ambition.
"These people are being used to prevail upon Musalia to stay in ODM so that he does not vie. If they love him so much, how come they did not question why he was not invited to the meeting before they came out and held the press conference?" said Shitanda who dismissed claims that he and Ikolomani MP Bonny Khalwale were supporting Mudavadi's presidential ambition so that they could retain their parliamentary seats.
Mudavadi's spokesman Kabatesi dismissed the plea by the MPs saying they had "let down the person who had instructed them to hold the press conference". "They have let down the client who sent them. A good mediator does not reveal the position of his or her client too early in the negotiations!" said Kabatesi.
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