Chama Cha Kazi (CCK) leader Moses Kuria and his TSP counterpart Mwangi Kiunjuri have dumped Deputy President William Ruto and are on their way back to President Uhuru Kenyatta’s fold. The two leaders have in the past publicly told Kenyans they have settled on Ruto as their preferred presidential candidate.
In a cryptic message on Monday morning, Kuria, who is recuperating at a Nairobi Hospital after suffering second-degree burning on his leg, said Kenya owed President Uhuru Kenyatta a debt of gratitude as he completes his second term.
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This was the first time in a long time that Moses Kuria was having kind words for the president, whom he has been at loggerheads with from 2018 after he (Uhuru) closed ranks with ODM leader Raila Odinga to champion the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).
Meanwhile, The Service Party leader Mwangi Kiunjuri over the weekend while in Mbeere South told off the Deputy President over what he called ‘lies’ by the president’s principal assistant who has been opposing the BBI and claiming it was creating positions for leaders, while not explaining to his Mt Kenya supporters that the document also contained the proposal to allocate more resources in the region.
Speaking in Siakago, Mbeere South on Friday, the former CS said any presidential hopeful seeking the region’s backing in 2022 must now assure them of a referendum in the first 100 days of assuming office.
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”We cannot have one man one shilling one vote if we don’t have a referendum. So whoever wants our support must guarantee us a referendum in the first 100 days. This should be an irreducible minimum for Mt. Kenya region,” Kiunjuri said, adding that he will be introducing some clauses in the Constitution Amendment Bill 2020, which include equal representation, equitable sharing of the national cake among other clauses.
Moses Kuria and Mwangi Kuinjuri are part of the Mt Kenya Unity Forum, comprising leaders of fringe political parties from the region seeking to have the 8 million-plus votes go to a single basket.