Mutula, Orengo rally support for a Raila-Kalonzo alliance

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By BOB ODALO bodalo@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted  Sunday, November 11  2012 at  00:30

IN SUMMARY

• Speaking at the launch of Mr Kilonzo’s campaign for the Makueni Senate seat in Wote, Mr Orengo, the lands minister, Mr Orengo said apart from Mr Odinga and Mr Musyoka none of the other presidential aspirants can pass the leadership and integrity test set in Chapter 6 of the new Constitution
• Mr Orengo claimed that President Kibaki had shortchanged Mr Musyoka’s Wiper Democratic Movement party on a number of times
• Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama set the tone of the meeting when he asked the crowd whether they endorsed an alliance involving the two presidential aspirants

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Cabinet ministers Mutula Kilonzo and James Orengo on Saturday took their campaign to have Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka negotiate a pre-election coalition deal to the VP’s backyard in Ukambani.

Speaking at the launch of Mr Kilonzo’s campaign for the Makueni Senate seat in Wote, Mr Orengo, the lands minister, Mr Orengo said apart from Mr Odinga and Mr Musyoka none of the other presidential aspirants can pass the leadership and integrity test set in Chapter 6 of the new Constitution.

Mr Orengo claimed that President Kibaki had shortchanged Mr Musyoka’s Wiper Democratic Movement party on a number of times.

“Kalonzo has been shortchanged twice. And the day we saw something unbelievable, in the quest to implement the new Constitution the government decided to remove a senior council Mutula Kilonzo from the Justice ministry and replaced him with a junior council Eugene Wamalwa. Some things only happen in Kenya,” Mr Orengo said.

Mr Kilonzo echoed Mr Orengo’s sentiments, saying his party leader had been humiliated in silence by leaders in the G7 grouping.

“We have two experts here who played a crucial role in helping Kenya to get a new Constitution and during the post-election talks that brought peace in the country, and they are James Orengo and myself. These two smart brains cannot fail to chart the way forward for ODM and Wiper,” Mr Kilonzo said.

The event was attended by 10 MPs from the Wiper Democratic Movement party and the Orange Democratic Party.

Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama set the tone of the meeting when he asked the crowd whether they endorsed an alliance involving the two presidential aspirants.

“Do you want us to tell them [Mr Musyoka and Mr Odinga] that we have decided to move forward or we wait for them to tell us the way forward?” asked Mr Muthama amid applause by the crowd.

“They called him insulting names and now they are telling him he lacks the numbers. What hypocrisy?”