Uhuru, Ruto warn Raila team

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto yesterday accused Opposition leader Raila Odinga of sowing seeds of discord among Kenyans.

During a campaign tour of Murang’a, the President said the NASA presidential candidate was bent on dividing the nation.

“How can a person who claims to be a national leader call for the eviction of one community? No leader can genuinely say they want to lead the country if they are threatening the prevailing peace,” said Uhuru.

The Jubilee Party leaders, accompanied by party nominees from the county, called on voters to vote exclusively for the party’s candidates.

Mr Ruto said it was essential for the President to have the backing of his party so that he could achieve his development agenda.

Supremacy battles between Jubilee candidates and their independent rivals played out at Bluepost Hotel where Uhuru and Ruto were expected to hold a closed-door-meeting.

The rivalry led to the cancellation of the meeting after rival supporters of incumbent Senator Kembi Gitura and Jubilee nominee Irungu Kangata clashed.

Mr Kangata, with the backing of other Jubilee candidates demanded the exit of the independent aspirants claiming they were intruders in the presidential campaign.

Among those who were waiting for the President at the venue were Cabinet Secretary James Macharia. Uhuru and Ruto proceeded to have a roadside address at Gatunyu market.

They made stops in Mabanda, Kiunyu, Kahaini, Kenol, Kagunduini, Karega, Kiriri and Muthithi.

They took swipes at the NASA leader as they appealed for a second term.

“We have achieved so much, because we have had peace in the country but that peace is under threat if Raila goes on making such statements,” Uhuru said.

Incitement

He accused his rival of inciting the people with false claims that his administration was favouring two communities at the expense of others.

“Why is he overlooking the sugarcane farmers whose loans we have offset too?” he posed. Ruto, on the other hand, said that Raila was not fit to be a leader if his strategy was to divide the country.

“There is no Kenyan who will be evicted from his residence because of their tribe. This country belongs to all Kenyans, he should tell us if he wants to lead the country or just a specific community,” said Ruto. The Jubilee leaders said NASA was determined to ensure that there were no elections in August.

They said the Opposition was raising issues with the ballot printing tender because they were not prepared for the elections which, Uhuru said, Jubilee would win with a 70+1 majority.

“They complained about the commissioners, BVR kits and now they want to print the ballot papers, all these demands mean they do not want an election on August 8,” Uhuru said.

Ruto said the vote rigging claim involving the military was baseless. “What votes do they have that they claim will be stolen? They should keep petty and pedestrian politics out of the military,” said Ruto.

Power connection

The two leaders said they had improved electricity connections in the county from 41,000 households to 50,000 and had done 300km of roads in four years. Further, they said, coffee farmers were debt free after the Government wrote off Sh5 billion in loans owed to coffee societies.

“The same Government he is castigating has offset sugarcane debts and is the first nation in Africa to provide pastoralists with insurance for their livestock,” he said.

Uhuru and Ruto called on the electorate to turn out in large numbers and vote in Jubilee Party aspirants to enable them have a team that would facilitate transformation of the country.

They emphasised that the electorate should support Jubilee aspirants in all posts, saying that would help his administration transform the country in the next five years.

“I need a formidable team that will be in charge of the development agenda that will help the growth of the nation,” said Kenyatta.

On the printing of ballot papers, he told off Raila saying he harbours personal interests as the contracted firm was involved with the task in the 2013 General Election.