Friday, October 19, 2012

TNA wants to swallow Ngilu, Eugene parties



THURSDAY, OCTOBER 18, 2012 - 00:00 -- BY SHEM OLUCHIR...
Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenya now wants his The National Alliance to swallow three more parties. However the gusto with which Uhuru has been obtaining defections is starting to cause friction within the G7 leadership.
The latest parties targeted by TNA are Charity Ngilu’s Narc, Eugene Wamalwa’s New Ford Kenya and Henry Obwocha’s Ford People. Talks are at an advanced state between TNA and the three parties but no deal has been sealed yet.
Uhuru has also been eyeing Mwangi Kiunjuri’s Grand National Union. However Kiunjuri has insisted that his party will support Uhuru for the presidency but will field its own candidates for all other elective seats.
TNA chair Johnstone Sakaja confirmed that the party was in talks with “like-minded parties” to build a winning team for the March 4 elections.
“Negotiations are underway. We are hoping that they join us, so that we can work together to transform this country,” he said. 
New Ford Kenya Secretary General Rtd Col Benjamin Mwema confirmed that his party has been in talks with TNA but said there is no formal agreement yet.
“We have been talking. We have a loose understanding. It’s a mutual working relationship, but that does not mean we are collapsing our party,” said Mwema.
Ngilu's close aide Martin Masai said NARC was ready to work with any other party that shares its vision. He did not confirm or deny talks between NARC and TNA.
 “Our candidate is keen on working with all those like-minded leaders who share her vision of the five basics of food and water, health, education, wealth creation and women empowerment. Everything revolves around these five,” Masai said.
Two weeks ago, Uhuru and Ngilu demonstrated their new friendship when Uhuru turned up for Ngilu’s university graduation party.
Ford People officials were yesterday in a consultative meeting trying to come up with modalities of a possible agreement.
If the negotiations are successful, the three parties will not field candidates candidates in March 2013 but will instead participate in TNA’s nomination process to choose election candidates.
TNA is hoping that it can secure a parliamentary majority by consolidating rival parties and even secure a first round victory for Uhuru over Raila in the presidential election.
This month PNU, which Kibaki used for his re-election in 2007, became the first party to sign a pact with TNA and agreed that all its candidates would participate in TNA nominations. If they win the nominations, they will stand as TNA candidates rather than PNU candidates.
Uhuru is reportedly anxious to avoid the problem faced by President Kibaki after the 2007 elections when he was declared president but could not run government because PNU did not command a majority in parliament.
To woo smaller parties, TNA has promised to conduct fair nominations and Uhuru has publicly declared that TNA originals will not be favoured. The TNA nominations will be held on December 10, 2012.
"We will treat them with mutual respect. No one person will have an advantage over the other. We will have a free and fair nomination process,” said TNA chairman Johnson Sakaja yesterday.
Last Sunday, Deputy Prime Minister and UDF presidential aspirant Musalia Mudavadi implicitly criticised TNA of using unorthodox means to obtain defections and alliances.
“The common denominator seems to be the regional strengths of a political outfit, with some going out of their way to use the carrot to woo ethnic consolidation,” he said through his private secretary Kibisu Kabatesi, .
He complained that politicians are being forced to drop principled commitment to party ideals to conform to ethnic persuasion.
 Mudavadi was denying media reports that Mandera Central MP Abdikadir Mohamed had deserted him for TNA. “One fails to feel the excitement that has forced a re-run for almost two weeks of this claim. Such distortions appear factual when repeated over time,” said Mudavadi.
“The Mandera Central Member of Parliament therefore remains an UDF stalwart and has never indicated leaving the party he founded with other young parliamentarians,” he said. A bitter Mudavadi complained that the media had over hyped the defection of Mukurweini MP Kabando wa Kabando.

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