Mudavadi: Don’t write me off from politics yet

By ERIC LUNGAI

After a short spell of silence and technical appearances, former Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi has come out to defend his cause in the run up to the last General Election.

On tours of the western region in the past weeks, where he attended the celebration to mark the tenth anniversary since the passing on of former Vice President Kijana Wamalwa and made stop overs in Vihiga County, Musalia spoke of his desire to vie for the presidency again.

“I am not done. I will stand up again and again until when I become the president. After all, apart from presidents Jomo Kenyatta and Daniel Moi, the other two presidents to have ruled the country have at least tried more than once before clinching the seat,” Mudavadi told his supporters in Vihiga.  The former DPM has kept a low profile after losing the elections, leaving his supporters gazing over his political future.

Some claimed that maybe Mudavadi could have been ‘bought’ by the Jubilee team to spoil for the CORD leader Raila Odinga who was favoured in the region. The fact that the former DPM closely associated with the Jubilee team after they clinched the election, and the consequent signing of the post poll pact with Amani coalition, raised suspicions.  

In Vihiga County, plans have been underway to crown the long serving former Hamisi MP and now Vihiga Senator George Khaniri as the Luhya kingpin.

Mr Khaniri said they are only going to give Mudavadi one more chance to prove his worth in the presidential elections after which he will take over in the 2022 election. “If Mudavadi cannot stand up to challenge of the sitting president and Raila Odinga, I will ask him to give me the chance to topple them,” said the Senator in a recent function.

Khaniri has exuded confidence that he is prepared to take over from Mudavadi as the leader of the region.

“We are still supporting Mudavadi but just in case he shows signs of being undecided about his future, I will have no option than to take over from him the leadership,” he said.

So far Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula who is also a co-principal in the CORD umbrealla party is the senior-most politician from Western region.

But Mudavadi is upbeat that the Luhya community still supports him and will stand by him in the coming elections.

“When driving, you can’t focus on the rear view because the vehicle may swerve from the road and end up causing an accident. I am solely concentrating on future plans and vying again and again. I still have the support of the people,” Mudavadi said.  

He further said that nothing will stop him from vying for the presidency in 2017 because he only tried once, and that does not mean that he is a spoiler.

“No one can claim that I spoilt for Raila. If so, then Raila also spoilt for me and should apologise for having done so. Peter Kenneth and Martha Karua could have also been blamed for spoiling for Uhuru Kenyatta and vice versa,” Mudavadi said.

Sabatia MP Alfred Agoi said  they are in talks and want to present Mudavadi to the people again as the preferred leader from the Luhya community who can lead the country.

“So far, Mudavadi is the only senior politician that we have from this region and there is no way anything can come to this society without passing through his hands. He will be presented again to the people,” says Agoi.

Mudavadi said that most people who are demanding that he retires from politics because he is a spoiler are propagandists and should be warned against divisive politics.