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Monday, November 28, 2011

Kibaki accuses politicians of spreading falsehood



By Francis Ngige
President Kibaki’s spirited campaign for acivic candidate in the Karima ward by-election in Othaya, that is set for on Monday, has split open a raging supremacy battle between the Party of National Unity (PNU) and Grand National Union (GNU) party.
Seeing Kibaki, who is also the Othaya MP, put in such a strong effort for a civic candidate is a rare sight and it left many baffled.
The stakes are so high in this by-election that its outcome is likely to tilt the political landscape of a region that has no dominant party.
President Kibaki (second left) when he visited Othaya District hospital during tour of development projects in his constituency, on Sunday. Photo: George Mulala/Standard
Another civic by-election in Ngorano ward in the neighbouring Mathira constituency is also pitting PNU against GNU as Kenya moves into an election year.
By visiting the area for two consecutive days, it was clear that Kibaki was leaving nothing to chance as his stay in office enters the home stretch.
The emerging dominance of Assistant Minister Mwangi Kiunjuri’s GNU has set off alarm bells inside Kibaki’s inner circle forcing the Head of State to enter the trenches.
Kibaki even exhibited rare anger in Othaya on Saturday, and accused certain unnamed individuals of "sneaking into the area at night and spreading politics of falsehoods and bribery"
Although GNU has no sitting MPs, the party has taken advantage of the inertia in PNU to establish itself across the region, entering into the contest in the two wards to test its popularity.
Mr Kiunjuri and former Mathira MP Nderitu Gachagua have been leading an aggressive recruitment drive in the region making, some PNU bigwigs jittery.
The party was re-launched in May, in a ceremony filled with fanfare that was conducted at the historic Ruring’u Stadium in Nyeri.
Since then, the party has been opening up offices in all counties as well as registering members in readiness for 2012.
In the meantime, PNU has not been recruiting members or making its presence felt across the voter-rich region.
On Sunday, Mwea MP Peter Gitau of PNU conceded that the party was on a downfall.
Cancel campaign
Mr Gitau blamed the party’s leadership for the poor showing in the political scene saying if nothing was done urgently, PNU would be non-existent by 2012.
"Tell me, when is the last time that you heard PNU having a meeting or recruiting members? We must face the reality and realise that the party has been overtaken by events," the MP said.
He said the GNU wave currently being witnessed in the region should be a wakeup call for PNU and its leadership.
Matters came to a head on Saturday when Kibaki, in an uncharacteristic manner, mounted an aggressive campaign for PNU candidate in Karima ward, Zachary Kiragu.
Accompanied by Ministers Njeru Githae and Esther Murugi, Kibaki made a whirlwind tour of the civic ward addressing three political rallies before holding a leaders meeting at Othaya CDF Hall.
The President, who fell short of naming Kiunjuri and Mr Gachagua, said some people were traversing the region "spreading the politics of hatred at night."
"I know what has been happening here at night. Some people have been visiting the area with an undisclosed agenda bribing the locals," an angry Kibaki said.
The entry of the Head of State into the political fray surprised many with Kiunjuri and Gachagua issuing a statement saying the President had been misled into believing that GNU was out to undermine his leadership. "It must be noted that GNU cannot be ignored in the run up to the next General Election. We have put up necessary structures for the party and we have also recruited members," said Kiunjuri. GNU had to cancel its last campaign rally as a result of the President‘s visit to the area as it felt "the ward was too small for the two parties to hold separate campaign tours."
Since its re-launch in May, GNU has presented itself as the alternative to the faltering PNU and as the choice of the youth.
As a result, GNU has fielded youthful candidates in both by-elections in Othaya and Mathira while PNU has gone for experienced people.
While in Karima on Saturday, the President left no doubt about his intention to persuade the locals to vote for the PNU candidate.
But a dispatch by PPS indicated that Kibaki was in Othaya "in an extensive tour of developmentprojects in the constituency."
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