Mutual suspicion between TNA and URP will stall Jubilee merger

As we inch closer to the March 31 deadline to merge Jubilee coalition parties, I am convinced this deal may come a cropper sooner rather than later. If it goes to fruition, it is unlikely to stop creation of new parties in the Jubilee strongholds.

There just aren’t sufficient grounds, and the will, for the merger to hold, especially between the two major outfits, TNA and URP, dominated by two major tribes. The TNA brigade thinks the new vehicle is being crafted for the use of the Deputy President, and do not seem inclined towards it.

Neither do some of the URP leaders from his backyard who doubt the new outfit will change his fortunes among their Mt Kenya colleagues.

The ongoing revelations of the NYS saga are likely to place that fractious unity under further stress. Aden Duale’s statement that the URP side of the coalition is targeted in the NYS saga is quite telling. The DP, his personal assistant and two of his key lieutenants have been dragged into the saga. To URP supporters, Duale’s claims may sound plausible and reveals emerging fault lines. Hitherto muted perceptions in Rift Valley that their coalition side is undermined in government will gain currency.

The matter has been muddled by the derisive remarks of TNA Secretary General, urging all to carry their cross, including the DP and his lieutenants who are key Jubilee leaders in Parliament. TNA ought to have shut offices last year when its chairman signed on to the new Jubilee party. Could it not have issued the statement as Jubilee, comprising both groups? Then Kikuyu Council of Elders jumped into the fray, warning the President to send off Duale and Murkomen! It crystalizes the perception that the government is theirs, not a coalition.

By urging the President not to associate with those implicated in the saga, their remarks could also be interpreted to mean they imply the DP too is a liability. I don’t hold brief for anybody but I am baffled by the abrasive grandstanding by the TNA wing of the coalition. When CORD piled pressure on the President to sack the cabinet secretaries over the graft allegations, the same URP leaders shouted themselves hoarse in defence of the Jubilee government. When it is their turn, Mt Kenya leaders want the duo to carry their own cross.

I hope this duo and others have learnt their lessons. URP members run the show in the National Assembly and can run a ring around the government in the House. The DP and his URP brigade are also the staunchest defenders of Jubilee government, both inside and outside the House. The TNA party knows better than throw stones when they also live in a glass house. Corruption is an enigma in this government, and painting each other black is not a remedy.

And the broadsides don’t bode well for either group. Already, MPs allied to both sides have raised concerns about the performance of jubilee government. The Kericho by-election has brought to the fore the undercurrents in the DP’s backyard. The recent visit to Central Kenya by the President too revealed growing discomfort by the leaders. In Meru, some MPs have loudly challenged the coalition on its performance record.

Folks in my county overwhelmingly voted for Jubilee too, almost to the last man. But we are increasingly feeling ignored too as a region that gave President Uhuru 98 per cent of its votes. Neither the President nor his Deputy has visited the county, nor is there any worthy development project initiated by Jubilee government in the past three years.

The Presidency needs to take charge and must be seen to be reading from the same script. And their followers too, subject of course to addressing the perceived and real imbalance in resource allocations.