National Super Alliance (NASA) leadership list presented to the National Assembly Wednesday afternoon sharply divided the coalition members, with factions opposing it and asking for its immediate withdrawal failure to which they threatened to pull out of the outfit.
In an argument that played both on the floor of the House and outside the chambers, NASA legislators allied to Wiper Party, Amani National Congress (ANC) and their ODM colleagues from Coast and other regions opposed the list saying it lacked gender and regional balance.
National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi had made a communication to the House informing MPs that he had received communication from the coalition appointing ODM’s Suba South MP John Mbadi as the Minority Leader and Wiper’s Robert Mbui as his Deputy.
Muturi said the communication also appointed Suna East MP, also of ODM as the Minority Whip, and Kiminini MP Dr Chris Wamalwa (Ford Kenya) as his Deputy. The Speaker said he had admitted the list as it had complied with the requirements of the standing orders, as it contained minutes of the coalition’s Parliamentary Group where the decision was agreed.
“NASA has since complied on the requirements and now I will urge both the Majority and Minority Leaders to submit names of Committee of Selection and that of the Committee on Appointment,” ruled Muturi.
This led to more MPs rising in opposition of the list, with Msambweni MP Suleiman Dori bitterly protesting that the Coast region had been left out of the leadership, despite ensuring that the region was a NASA stronghold.
Dori, who is also the chairman of the Coast Parliamentary Group complained that it was selfish for the NASA leadership to have two of the four leadership positions given to Nyanza region and worse both from the same party.
Kilifi North Owen Baya protested that they had been humiliated by the party and made to suffer marginalization despite their massive contribution in ODM and the NASA coalition.
As the protests against the list boiled, Muturi said he could not help the situation and instead urged those dissatisfied to present their protests to the coalition’s leadership that had written to him.
Sensing that their help would not come from the floor of the House, the dissatisfied group walked out to address the press, threatening that unless the list was withdrawn, they would pull out of the coalition.
“Unless this list is withdrawn, we are ready to say kwaheri (goodbye) to NASA, as we have realized that this is a coalition that lacks internal democracy,” warned Borabu MP Ben Momanyi (Wiper), who also warned that they will not take any instructions from the coalition until the list is withdrawn.
Likoni MP Mishi Mboko complained that NASA had never held a Parliamentary Group meeting to address the issue, claiming that the list and the alleged minutes were generated irregularly.
“We are since realizing that we are not being treated as equal stakeholders in NASA. Where are we as women in that leadership list? We want our leader Raila Odinga to realise that we have a stake in this, and we want a list that has gender and regional balance,” protested Mishi.
But as the group protested, with the Coast legislators retreating for a meeting to plan on the way forward, their counterparts from Nyanza escorted Junet to assume his new office, insisting that the matter was settled and could not be revised.
Lugari MP Ayub Savula, who had initially been earmarked for the Deputy Minority Leader position claimed that his ANC party would be retreating to Naivasha, where they will be considering their position in NASA coalition.
