Nairobi gubernatorial race gives Uhuru, Raila headache

The talk of grooming of Water and Irrigation Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa into Nairobi politics has rattled Jubilee aspirants for the governorship, with some covertly vowing to block him.

Those who have declared interest in the seat are Dagoretti South MP Dennis Waweru, Senator Mike Sonko, Nominated MP Johnson Sakaja and former Starehe MP Margaret Wanjiru.

Mr Wamalwa’s candidature has upset other gubernatorial aspirants given that his Bukusu political background is something President Uhuru kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto are looking at to add value to the presidential vote in 2017 presidential elections.

The president hosted the CS and other New Ford-Kenya leaders led by Bungoma Governor Ken Lusaka when they announced the dissolution of the party to join Jubilee. Yesterday at least eight MPs from Western and 30 MCA’s approved the decision. Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi recently said he would support Wamalwa should he join the Nairobi gubernatorial contest.

The CS is one of the key leaders the president and his deputy are banking on to consolidate their support in Western. Ruto and Wamalwa have been holding political rallies in Nairobi and Western.

Yesterday, Wamalwa confirmed that he was indeed under a lot of pressure to run for governor in Nairobi County. He also confirmed that he will definitely be on the ballot in 2017.

“For now, I am extremely busy as as CS Water and Irrigation. I will continue working until the February or so deadline for people with political ambitions to quit government,” he said.

He denied he was preferred candidate of Ruto and Kenyatta in the Nairobi race saying the matter of his candidacy had not even been discussed at that level. Further, he said, Jubilee party structures are yet to be fully formed.

“What I want everyone to know for now is that I have the capability. I am a seasoned politician and I can chew gum and scale stairs at the same time. As a seasoned player, I can play as a striker, as a utility player or defender,” he said.

Mr Waweru’s team which has ran a well-oiled campaign for the governorship since last year is unable to come to terms with latest developments. The team has been banking on the 600,000 plus Mount Kenya vote and other ethnic groups to bag the seat.

The team was behind the “political transfer” of 2013 TNA governor aspirant Ferdinand Waititu to Kiambu County as he was viewed as a destabilising factor in Nairobi. It also heavily funded the transfer of voters from outlying counties into Nairobi in the last voter registration.

When we spoke to Waweru about the entry of Wamalwa in the race he was unperturbed: “We cannot be distracted into our grand march to County Hall. Our plans are very much on course. Those who think city politics is for the faint-hearted will be in for a rude shock.”

He said he was not aware that the CS was coming over to Nairobi and expressed hope that “he is still helping the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta to distribute water across the country, and not dabbling in politics.”

Not consulted

“All I know is that Wamalwa is a Cabinet Secretary with a very heavy docket. I suppose he has a lot on his table. When time comes and he expresses a clear wish to parachute himself from Trans Nzoia to Nairobi, we will engage him accordingly. For now, I treat all these as rumors,” he said.

Mr Sakaja also played “cool” with regard to Wamalwa’s purported entry into city politics. He instead called for fair nominations to ensure the coalition picks a popular candidate who will win the seat.

“I have been busy on the ground meeting people from all walks of life and convincing them to walk with me. The vision I have for Nairobi to turn it into the New York of Africa is what I am using to endear myself to the people,” he said.

He said Nairobi residents should focus on evaluating who among the aspirants can offer them strategic and focused leadership.

“For now I am focused on winning the ticket for our coalition so that i can represent them. The argument that there are some who are favored by the coalition is a fallacy. All of us have an equal right and will get the ticket based on our popularity on the ground,” he said.

Whereas Waweru and Sakaja were diplomatic, others like the Chairman of Kikuyu Council of Elders Wachira Kiago was quite open and bold.

“He has not consulted us yet he knows we have been putting our house in order for a very long time. Essentially, what he has done is to get into a home without knocking and bypassed sitting room straight into the bedroom,” Mr Kiago told The Standard on Sunday.

However, he said the council was not ring-fencing Nairobi County but is only demanding respect from other political players especially those within Jubilee. He said Wamalwa should appreciate that he was appointed CS although he did not support Kenyatta’s presidential bid in 2013.

The CS supported the candidacy of Amani leader Musalia Mudavadi.

“He is a project and projects never pick in this country. Traditionally, people take their city skills to their villages. They do not parachute their village political skills to the city. I am surprised he wants to reinvent the wheel,” UDF chair Nairobi Josephat Bhukachi said.

Mr Bhukachi added thaat Wamalwa’s Eugene’s sponsors do not control Nairobi politics and that they are essentially fooling him. Besides, he said, the CS will not be adding any value to Jubilee by running in Nairobi and not Trans Nzoia.

Starehe MP Maina Kamanda, who is an ally of Waweru, said that as one of the senior politicians in Nairobi he was keen to ensure that the coalition wins the Nairobi governorship.

“We want to make sure we win the seat but also avoid fallout from the candidates who will be vying for the seats. That is why we insist that the process has to be free and fair,” said Mr Kamanda.

He also rebuffed Wamalwa’s “project” tag saying there was no candidate in Nairobi who has an upper-hand. He said all the aspirants on Jubilee coalition would have to prove that they can deliver the seat from CORD for one to win a ticket.

An analysis of 2013 election results for Nairobi county reveals that city politics is still largely ethnic based and party driven.

Some candidates like Governor Evans Kidero and Sonko enjoyed votes outside their ethnic groups but those were only additions to a firm ethnic bloc at their base.