Wednesday, January 2, 2013

URP scoffs at Mudavadi party bid to claim name


By Geoffrey Mosoku
Eldoret North MP William Ruto’s allies have said UDF has no basis to claim ownership of the name Jubilee Alliance.
MPs Joshua Kuttuny and Charles Keter on Tuesday said the URP faction of the coalition applied for the registration of Jubilee Alliance a day before UDF signed an Addendum to join them. 
The MPs said UDF had no basis to make any demand for them to exit from the coalition, saying Musalia Mudavadi had announced he had quit the alliance.
“We applied for registration of Jubilee Alliance with the office of the Registrar of Political Parties on December 3, while UDF joined the alliance on December 4. So they have no basis to demand us to stop using the name ‘Jubilee Alliance,” Keter told The Standard on the telephone from Kericho.
On Monday, a meeting convened by acting Registrar of Political Parties Lucy Ndung’u to resolve the row pitting Mudavadi against his former allies in Jubilee Alliance failed after UDF claimed the name was coined when UDF joined TNA/URP alliance, which had earlier signed a deal on December 3.
The meeting followed UDF party’s letter to Ms Ndung’u complaining of TNA’s reneging on Jubilee agreement stating that presidential candidate be nominated by UDF and TNA.
Demanded apology
During the meeting, UDF demanded that both TNA and URP make public apology for violating the agreement signed on December 4 and stop using the name Jubilee Alliance during the coming elections.
However, Keter said he was in possession of a letter from the registrar approving that the name Jubilee has been registered with her office.
“I have a letter here showing that Jubilee applied for registration and was given an approval under the applicant Victor Yegon,” the Belgut MP added. 
Yegon, an ally of Keter, is the founder Secretary General of URP, who resigned to pave way for former IIEC commissioner Davis Chirchir.
 Kutuny and Keter also dismissed UDF claim that the Addendum signed on December 4 had nullified the earlier agreement signed between URP and TNA at Jevanjee gardens on December 3, saying the Addendum did not get necessary approval from the parties’ National Governing Council (NGC). 
“They have no basis in law to make any claim since an Addendum cannot in any way nullify the original contrac; this is only an addition clause. Unlike the original agreement which was approved by URP/TNA NGCs, the addendum did not reach that level so it holds no water,” Keter added.
The Mudavadi team is planning to hold an NDC on Friday to nominate him as UDF presidential candidate.


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