Eldoret North MP William Ruto is under growing pressure to go it alone in the 2012 presidential race, the Star has established. Leaders from the wider Kalenjin and Nandi communities met at Ruto's Eldoret North home over the weekend and told him in no uncertain terms that they will not support the Uhuru-Ruto alliance if Ruto is not the presidential candidate. They said they will instead back ODM party leader Prime Minister Raila Odinga. 
Talk that Ruto will be deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta's running mate has gained ground with members of the G7 alliance already drawing up strategies that would see the two presented on the ballot paper
The Kalenjin leaders opposed to the alliance's plan to have Ruto as Uhuru's running mate include professionals who fear the community will be isolated if Ruto continues to make costly political mistakes. “We are trying to be strategic. Most of our people don’t like the G7 Alliance and feel that they may in the end lose out. We have quietly told Ruto that he cannot trust some of the people in the alliance unless they commit to support him for the presidency otherwise we will look at other viable options,” said a parastatal chief from Rift Valley who attended the meeting.
Following the meeting on Saturday, Uhuru cancelled his trip to Eldoret where he was scheduled to attend a function hosted by Ruto. “How can Uhuru go to a place where people don’t want to support him? We told him not to go even though we had earlier confirmed that he would, among other things, attend a prayer service at a Catholic seminary in Eldoret," said a close Uhuru associate.
After the more than 500 civic, professional, religious and politicial leaders from Nandi, Uasin Gishu, Trans Nzoia, Keiyo, Marakwet and Baringo expressed their concerns, Ruto indicated that he would not be Uhuru's running mate. “I am in the 2012 race to the end. We however cannot win alone and that is why we have to work with friends from all over the country”, said Ruto
Interviews with some of the people who attended the meeting revealed that some of those who spoke queried Ruto’s alliance with Uhuru. They said Uhuru was unlikely to get support from the region's province to replace President Kibaki.] “We cannot have a relationship which only benefits one side. Your friends from Central must be ready to back you or another Kenyan. If not we would rather do with Raila”, said one of the civic leaders from Nandi.
During the meeting which was also attended by Wareng County Council Chairman Paul Kiprop, Eldoret Mayor William Rono and former Nominated MP Mark Too, Ruto enumerated the political networks he had established in readiness for the 2012 presidential race. He said he had already developed close ties with MPs Western province such as Eugene Wamalwa as well as others from other regions in the country.
He announced the legal challenge that had so far stopped him from taking over the UDM will be resolved in a week. The party chairman Gen. (rtd) John Koech had filed a case with the Political Parties Tribunal objecting to his ouster and replacement with pro-Ruto officials. The case has not been concluded pending the publication of the rules guiding the tribunal. The rules cannot be published as they have to be written by the Chief Justice who has been nominated but has not been appointed yet. “We are also talking to other leaders like Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, Professor George Saitoti among others to see how we will work together”, he told the meeting.
Elsewhere, a section of elites from Rift Valley warned Ruto that he would be misleading the Kalenjin community if he entered the presidential race either as Uhuru’s running mate or going for the presidency himself.
John Simba, a professional from the region said the Uhuru-Ruto alliance had not attracted interest among the Kalenjin community because there was still too much suspicion between the two communities.
Simba said Ruto was bound to fail if he ran for the presidency on his own. He said his defeat would relegate the community to political irrelevance.
They said Ruto had also antagonized the electorate by opposing the nomination of Dr Willy Mutunga as the new Chief Justice. Yesterday, Ruto continued to voice his opposition to Mutunga when he addressed a thanksgiving prayer.
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