We don’t owe you a penny, Raila’s party tells ANC

ODM has denied claims by Amani National Congress (ANC) that it is sponsoring chaos in NASA partner parties to deny them a share of funds from the exchequer. 

Chairman John Mbadi said it was shocking that ANC leader Musalia Mudavadi was laying claim to the Political Parties Fund’s Sh4.5 billion awarded to the Opposition leader Raila Odinga-led party for the 2013–2017 period.

Mbadi said ODM was not in any coalition agreement with ANC during the period since Mudavadi contested the presidency under United Democratic Forum (UDF) in the 2013.

The National Assembly Minority Leader said it was ODM, Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper Party and Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang’ula’s Ford-Kenya that were in the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) at the time. “The Sh4.5 billion they keep referring to is as a result of a court case entered by ODM before 2015. It was before we formed the National Super Alliance (NASA), which ANC is part of,” Mbadi said yesterday.

“We have not received even a shilling from the billions. But even if we were to share the money, it can only be with Ford-Kenya and Wiper,” he added.

Mbadi told Mudavadi to stop dragging ODM into their internal party wrangles, saying ODM had no reason to interfere in the running of other parties.

The MP said even NASA partner parties were not entitled to money the Orange party would receive from the exchequer since it did not field a presidential candidate in the October 26, 2017 repeat poll. It is only Jubilee Party and ODM that are entitled to government funding based on their numerical strength in elective positions. Mbadi said ANC, Wiper and Ford-Kenya could not, therefore, demand to benefit from the money ODM gets by the virtue of the number of its elected leaders.

“We could have shared with them if we were going to get funding from the votes garnered at the presidential level. NASA did not participate in the repeat presidential election,” said Mbadi.

He said: “The money we get is for the five positions – MCA, Woman Rep, Senator, MP and governor. Our partners fielded candidates against us.”

Mudavadi has linked leadership wrangles in ANC and Ford-Kenya to the political parties’ funding. He accuses ODM of reneging on the agreed formula of sharing the funds and resorting to sponsoring dissent within the parties to block them from demanding a share.

“They are reluctant to share the money yet it is in the agreement. You have seen there is political destabilisation all over. Those schemes won’t succeed. It does not help to undermine other political parties,” said Mudavadi.

Ford-Kenya Secretary General Eseli Simiyu and nominated MP Godfrey Osotsi said Mudavadi and Wetang’ula should not use ODM to hide their failings. “Their ineptitude has been exposed and they are now running around to look for someone to blame. The issues in Ford-Kenya have nothing to do with the money. It is about party leadership,” said Eseli.

Osotsi said: “You cannot blame another party for your woes. How does ODM come in? It is party members who are agitating for change.”