Change Of Tack In Cord As Poll Nears

Prime Minister Raila Odinga has reassembled his troops for the final onslaught.

BY
SUNDAY, 10 FEBRUARY, 2013

With only 23 days left to the General Election, the Coalition of Reforms and Democracy (Cord) has moved to once again reinvigorate its campaign machinery amid concerns Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s State House bid is being harmed by lack of a countrywide grassroots presence.

Raila and Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka delegated the functions of the Cord Executive Board, co-chaired by Public Service minister Dalmas Otieno and Defence assistant minister David Musila to a Special Committee headed by Roads minister Franklin Bett and Agriculture assistant minister Gideon Ndambuki, with overall responsibility over the coalition’s campaign operations. The move immediately sparked speculation over the fate of the presidential campaign team headed by insiders saying he had been kicked out as part of the reorganization.
A statement from the ODM secretariat at Orange House appeared to confirm the reports indicating he had been named the Chairman of the Cord National Campaign Committee (CNCC) to spearhead the presidential campaigns ahead of the March 4 General Election. According to the statement Bett and Ndambuki are to be assisted by Christopher Mandumandu from Ford-Kenya.

The statement added the team, who appointment took effect immediately, will co-ordinate all presidential campaign activities at the Raila Odinga Presidential Campaign Secretariat and all the National Secretariats of the three main parties ODM, WDM, FORD-Kenya and the partner parties. However, Owalo immediately fought back stating the Bett- Ndambuki team was a political committee within the coalition, whose role is limited to attending to political issues related to fallouts that arose from the recent party nomination process and harmonisation of Cord Coalition candidates for various positions with a view to enhancing the Dalmas Otieno performance of the coalition in the forthcoming elections.

“It neither has an oversight role over the Raila Odinga Presidential Campaign Secretariat nor any other Coalition member Party Secretariat for that matter,” he said. Owalo said the PM’s presidential campaign secretariat continues to discharge its mandate of overseeing all aspects of his presidential campaigns and has no functional or reporting relationship whatsoever with/to the Bett- Ndambuki Committee, which is to be housed at the ODM Nairobi branch office.

“For the record, the Raila Odinga Presidential Campaign Secretariat is directly responsible to Cord Presidential Candidate,” he added. But another statement issued by Raila’s media aide, Salim Lone late in the evening reconfirmed the Bett

David Musila

Committee had overall responsibility over all entities involved in Raila’s campaign. He said the mandate of the special committee was to formulate and propose policies to the Cord Presidential Summit and oversee the operations of the various political units belonging to CORD and its member parties. “It will also harmonise and streamline, in the final run-up to Election Day, the initiatives of the various Cord campaign entities working to promote the Presidential ticket and other coalition candidates,”Lone added.

Bett has since welcomed the move urging all Cord members to come together and work as a team. “We must support each other and we will win this race together,” he was quoted as saying. This is the second time Cord is reconstituting its campaign, the first being when it was expanded to in- corporate CORD coalition partners. The move saw Andrew Mwavwa, who had been Head of Strategy in the Kalonzo Musyoka for President Secretariat become the Deputy Head of the Raila Presidential Campaign Secretariat while Ken Wanyama, a member of the Moses Wetangula Presidential Campaign Secretariat became the Director in Charge of Strategic Alliances and Partnerships.

Yesterday, Owalo insisted he was still in office even as insiders insisted he was on his way out for failing to deliver a robust nationwide campaign. “He has effectively been sacked. They have failed to structure an elaborate campaign at the grass- roots. They are just sitting in Nairobi issuing press statements yet our candidates and volunteers have been left stranded in the countryside when they are all but willing to campaign both for themselves and the PM,” said a source privy to the ongoings in the Raila campaign.

The source added the secretariat will be reshuffled and more members may also be dropped. However, Owalo said the campaign secretariat has not been affected by the latest turn of events. “They are just a committee. They have taken over the functions that were initially being undertaken by Dalmas Otieno and David Musila. I am speaking to you from my office as we speak, ”he said on phone.