Moi, Biwott Threat To Ruto’S Fortunes

BY WINSTONE CHISEREMI
SUNDAY, 3 MARCH, 2013

Former ruling party, Kanu, and the National Vision Party pose a major threat to Jubilee Alliance’s quest to garner majority votes and elective seats in Rift Valley. The two parties associated with former president Daniel arap Moi and former powerful Minister Nicholas Biwott respectively have been eating into the Jubilee presidential running mate William Ruto’s United Republican Party (URP) support in the expansive region.

Areas perceived to be URP stronghold where party candidates are facing stiff competition include Baringo, West Pokot, Elgeyo Marakwet, Trans Nzoia and Uasin Gishu counties. The competition was so vicious that the aspirants were forced to call in Jubilee presidential running mate William Ruto to campaign for them. But despite coming to their rescue, Ruto has been facing rebellion in parts of the province over what supporters term as imposition of leaders on them. A case in point was Baringo County two weeks ago where he had taken his campaign to drum up support for World Wide Gospel Evangelism Bishop Jackson Kosgey, running on URP’s ticket for the senate seat.

The crowd heckled Ruto as he tried to rally them to back Bishop Kosgey, the father of celebrated gospel singer Emmy Kosgey, at Kabartonjo Township in Baringo North constituency. Instead, the crowd told Ruto to his face they would back former Baringo Central MP Gideon Moi, who is running on the former ruling party’s ticket. The former Eldoret North MP faced similar treatment in Chepkorio playground in Elgeyo Marakwet County where the local community told him they would elect a governor of their choice. A tight race is shaping up in the contest for the county governor seat pitting the youthful Alex Tolgos of URP and Kanu’s Moses Changwony, a former TARDA chief executive officer. Biwott, who is also NVP leader, is vying for the Elgeyo Marakwet senate seat against former Moi university law lecturer Kipchumba Murkomen in contest billed to be titanic test to URP’s strength in the region.

Some of the areas where URP’s chance of clinching parliamentary seats hangs in balance include Turbo and Soy constituencies in Uasin Gishu county and Aldai constituency in Nandi County. In Soy, Kanu’s Jonathan Bii has been endorsed by a section of elders to take on youthful Eric Barchilei of URP while in the neighbouring Turbo constituency, URP’s Elisha Busienei, a former nominated councillor at Eldoret municipal council, is feeling the heat from Janet Rotich of Narc who is regarded as a front runner. In Nandi County, Industrialisation minister Henry Kosgey is giving stiff competition 31-year-old lawyer Stephen Sang for the senate seat owing to his development record and grass root mobilisation skills.

Former State House comptroller Abraham Kiptanui has also been causing ripples in the campaign for the Uasin Gishu county senate seat where he is pitted against youthful Isaac Melly of URP, a former dean of students at Mt Kenya university, Eldoret campus. Biwott, who once served as Keiyo South MP for 30 years, has dismissed Ruto’s call for a six piece vote for Jubilee candidates in the region terming his action as lacking in democracy and outdated. He said that the URP party leader is in for a rude shock after tomorrow’s elections, saying voters should left to elect leaders of their choice instead of dictating to them on which direction to take. “We should give the voters a chance to exercise their democratic rights to elect leaders of their choice at the ballot instead of trying to interfere with their rights,” argued Biwott. But while campaigning in various parts of the Rift Valley Province, Ruto has asked the Kalenjin to vote in large numbers to ensure alliance forms the next government.

Ruto accused Moi and Biwott of seeking to derail the coalition’s chance of clinching various elective seats in the region. He pointed out that it was wrong for the duo to put road blocks on their path of the coalition on the verge of forming the next government. The outspoken URP party leader told Moi to reciprocate the support he and his Presidential flag bearer Uhuru Kenyatta had accorded him during his Presidency by backing their bid on March 4 poll.

He stated that the political machination of Biwott and Moi were likely to divide the Kalenjin vote as their chances as a Jubilee victory in the first round, noting that it was the unity of the community that enabled Moi to ascend to the country’s leadership. Ruto regretted that Moi and Biwott were sponsoring candidates against Jubilees despite the fact that they assisted them to run the former Kanu government smoothly. “People whom we assisted to run the government smoothly are working round the clock telling Kalenjin community not to back Jubilee leaders. We are aware of their plans to cause division among our people to achieve selfish political gains”, Ruto told a campaign rally at Sosiot playing ground in Belgut constituency. “We are telling them to quit politics and back us the younger generation instead of putting road blocks and interfering with our politics. They should give us their blessings because we campaigned for them day and night during their time and this made them to be successful politicians,” Ruto said.

He warned of what he termed “disintegrated voting style”, which he said would spell doom for the Kalenjin while, at the same time, urging locals to shun small parties and vote for URP candidates. While assuring the community the community that no partner in Jubilee Alliance would betray the other, Ruto explained he teamed up with TNA leader Uhuru Kenyatta for the good of the country