Cord retreat avoided talk on 2017 flagbearer at tension-packed meet

Personal attacks and accusations marked the Cord retreat last Sunday as the meeting ended without a concrete solution to the thorny matter of the 2017 presidential flagbearer.

However, the Cord retreat resolved that individual parties that form the coalition will remain intact so as to avoid the headwinds that URP and TNA are experiencing with selling Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP) to their members.

But the issue of the presidential candidate is becoming sensitive amidst fears of increasing opposition fatigue and lack of a clear winning strategy by the three coalition principals.

Pollster Angela Ambitho, who was among several panellists who made presentations at the retreat, provided resourceful information on the coalition’s potential, blaming the leadership for their lacklustre performance in the 2013 elections and as the Opposition.

The emotive presidential candidate issue was avoided with Raila Odinga (ODM), Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper) and Moses Wetang’ula (Ford Kenya) driving the talks away from the matter.

Mr Musyoka and Mr Wetang’ula, whose stay in Cord is currently being weighed following Jubilee’s new strategy targeting their political bases, insisted they would be in Cord to the end.

In Ukambani, Machakos Governor Dr Alfred Mutua has intensified campaigns meant to challenge Mr Musyoka’s hold of the region while President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy President William Ruto have been making forays into the Cord strongholds of Western and Coast regions.

“It is true that the issue of the presidential candidate is beginning to bubble. But our prayer is that it will cool off to allow us solidify the Cord relationship even more. There are those who are now feeling that Kalonzo (Mr Musyoka) should be the 2017 candidate but we insist that Raila (Mr Odinga) still commands a larger national constituency and can win with ease,” said Nyatike MP Omondi Anyanga.

Mr Anyanga argues that concerns over who should be the presidential candidate should be addressed on time so that it doesn’t tear the coalition apart so close to the elections.

While most ODM MPs feel Mr Odinga should be given a second chance in Cord to be the presidential flagbearer, some MPs from Wiper and Ford Kenya are warning that there is an increasing voter “fatigue” with Mr Odinga that could lead to a protest vote and huge apathy.

“We are asking for Mr Odinga’s understanding on this matter. He can lead this team into victory but he must not be the striker. If you are assigned a penalty and you hit goal posts three times, the coach can retain you as a player but you stay away from penalty situations,” said a Wiper MP, who spoke in confidence.

Some lawmakers are encouraging the coalition to think of raiding the Jubilee turf by forging an alliance with Mr Ruto with the intention of creating a major position that President Kenyatta’s TNA cannot offer him in 2017.

But it is the altercation between members at the forum that nearly tore the Naivasha meeting apart.

The coalition’s Minority Leader, Mr Francis Nyenze, defending himself from attacks that he was providing weak leadership in the National Assembly, reportedly threatened that Wiper could walk out of the coalition if it was not taken seriously and its leaders respected.

The Cord leaders met at the Great Rift Valley Lodge in Naivasha for a Parliamentary Group/Governor’s summit retreat that was to “evaluate the performance of the coalition both in Parliament and outside for the last two-and-a-half years, set the parliamentary agenda for the coalition in the next half of the 11th Parliament and plan for the next General Election.”

Initially, the retreat had been scheduled to take place at Simba Lodge in Naivasha before the venue was suddenly changed.

“The meeting was evidently tension-packed. It was made worse by the delay in starting. Initially the arrangement was that it would start at 2 pm (Sunday) but that did not happen because the principals arrived late,” a source at the meeting said.

Mr Odinga is reported to have arrived around 8 pm after attending the Harambee Stars versus Zambia football match at Nyayo Stadium in Nairobi while his co-principal Kalonzo Musyoka only attended the Monday session.

According to Wiper Secretary-General Hassan Omar, the meeting was about taking stock “and we needed to be very candid.”

“There were no no-go zones. Whatever a member felt was pertinent and legitimate was discussed, including the coalition’s performance and the performance of the coalition leadership. That is how democracy works. The meeting was cordial but very candid,” said Mr Omar, who is also the Mombasa Senator. 

Mr Omar said members were told to “subscribe to the principles of the coalition” instead of “narrow political considerations”.

According to sources at the meeting, Wiper and Ford Kenya expressed their displeasure with ODM whose leaders they accused of being domineering on the coalition matters.

Kiminini MP Chris Wamalwa, who spoke on behalf of Ford Kenya, is reported to have accused ODM of not consulting the other parties.

“He cited the position a section of ODM MPs took on the Bill to change the election date (from August to December) during the party’s retreat in Maanzoni which has been interpreted as a Cord position,” Sunday Nation was told.

He also accused some ODM MPs of usurping powers of the Cord Management Committee and parliamentary leaders. The Sunday Nation could not reach Mr Wamalwa for comment.

Mr Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja, ODM), however, rejected claims of tension in Cord.

“We have come out of this retreat much more energised and focused. It gave us an opportunity to take stock of our gains and shortcomings midway through the term of this Parliament. We are now better prepared and focused to face our opponents in 2017,” said Mr Wandayi.

But he cautioned that any split in Cord would be politically catastrophic.

“In the face of myriad challenges and setbacks that have characterised the Jubilee administration, it is becoming clear that the salvation for Kenyans lies with Cord remaining intact,” he said.

During the retreat, the future of Cord was also on the table. There were two proposals to merge Cord affiliates to form a single party or leave them distinct but under the coalition’s umbrella.

The proposal to merge the affiliate parties was largely backed by Wiper party.

Senators Johnstone Muthama, the co-chair of the Cord Management Committee, is said to have spoken passionately in favour of a merger. However, ODM and Ford Kenya leaders were not as enthusiastic, preferring the second option of leaving the parties in Cord intact.

After a lot of discussion, Dr Adams Oloo, who was invited to the retreat as an expert, recommended that the parties remain intact to avoid falling into the JAP trap — with the new Jubilee outfit facing opposition, especially from Mr Ruto’s URP. 

This route, it was argued, would also minimise fallouts because individual parties will still retain bargaining power. In addition, the individual parties were said to already have name recognition and a new party would require a lot of resources to sell to the electorate.

But the elephant in the room remained the flagbearer, a matter that was left pending.

“After much discussion it was decided that the matter will be left to the principals to decide and then brief the coalition members at a later date,” said a source from the meeting.

Another subject that raised a lot of heat was on the party and coalition loyalty. The Cord leaders also discussed the Bill to amend the Constitution to change the election date from August of every fifth year to December.

The private member’s Bill by Ugenya MP David Ochieng’ attracted passionate debate at the retreat. Supporters cautioned the coalition on taking a collective position on the Bill because “it is popular with MPs and the outcome could embarrass Cord.”

Mr Ochieng’ had failed to garner the required two-thirds majority during the Bill’s Second Reading.