The closed-door meeting held at the Panafric Hotel, for close to seven hours, and attended by TNA leader Uhuru Kenyatta ended in consensus to use the delegates system/FILE
The closed-door meeting held at the Panafric Hotel, for close to seven hours, and attended by TNA leader Uhuru Kenyatta ended in consensus to use the delegates system.
Garsen MP Danson Mungatana who read the resolution said that they had settled on the delegates system as it was the most open and fair process.
“We want to reiterate that the nomination system for delegates is what we have settled for because that is the fairest and most democratic system that to pick our flag bearer,” said Mungatana insisting that the TNA was still committed to the principles of the Jubilee Alliance.
At least 30 MPs attended the meeting which came hours after the Jubilee Alliance called off nominations to select a flag bearer for the second time as TNA and the United Democratic Forum (UDF) kept jostling over whether to use a primary poll or strike a boardroom deal.
After meetings seeking compromise between UDF and TNA flopped on Sunday and Monday, Musalia Mudavadi who had been scheduled to accompany Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto to a rally in Kitui skipped the rally.
Sources within Monday’s meeting claimed that the MPs all of whom support Kenyatta’s bid insisted that the delegates’ conference to choose the presidential candidate for the Jubilee Alliance proceed without UDF party leader Mudavadi.
An option was floated to have Narc leader Charity Ngilu participate in the nominations but this too proved tough as she is not signatory to the pre-election deal with TNA, UDF and the United Republican Party.
“The problem with this option was the difficulty in convincing the Narc leader to either leave her party for TNA or dissolve it all together,” said the source who sought not to be named.
Although consensus reigned on the use of delegates, Kenyatta is said to have been uncomfortable with the radical option of excluding a coalition partner form the process.
The resolve by TNA came even as a joint TNA and UDF parliamentary group meeting at the Jacaranda Hotel failed to agree on the mode of nomination to be used to pick their presidential candidate.
Speaking after a meeting which involved 15 MPs, UDF’s Abdikadir Mohammed who chaired the daylong talks said they were ‘making exceptional progress’.
“You are aware that we have had technical teams working round the clock for some time. We have now called in the different PGs (Parliamentary Groups) from the different parties doing the final negotiations. By the end of this process we shall have an answer for the country and a candidate for the Jubilee Coalition,” said Mohammed.
TNA had already brought its delegates to the city and Kenyatta was scheduled to meet them on Tuesday morning at the Multi Media University.
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