Tag: Grand National Union of Kenya

The more President Uhuru Kenyatta tells Jubilee Party members and leaders to quit speculating about his succession, the more political talk escalates. Last Thursday, the President threatened to sack Cabinet secretaries involved in politics. The warning came just a few days after Laikipia woman representative Catherine Waruguru told a public gathering attended by Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mwangi Kiunjuri in Nyahururu that the former Grand National Union leader was fit to play kingpin for the Mt Kenya region once President Kenyatta exited the scene. In an apparent effort to pacify supporters of Deputy President William Ruto that their man will not be short-changed in the Building Bridges and "Handshake" politics, Mr Muhoho urged calm in the face of proposals to change the Constitution to disperse executive Presidential powers to additional offices. Using cryptic Kikuyu and Biblical idioms, he said: “Kaba andu maingihe, nyama inyihe (its better to have more people in a feast than more meat and few people).” Reaching out to the opposition to look for lost sheep did not mean the President had abandoned the sheep he already had at home, added the former Catholic priest and scholar. During the event in Othaya, home to retired President Mwai Kibaki, former Principal Secretary and newly installed DP deputy party leader Irungu Nyakera was publicly introduced by former Othaya MP Mary Wambui. Though Mr Nyakera may not have national leadership ambitions as yet, his installation as DP deputy party leader has been viewed as part of plans in refurbishing the outfit in readiness for succession politics horse trading in the event that internal tensions inside Jubilee Party escalated into a fallout ahead of 2022 general election. Already, the Democratic Party has waded into Nairobi politics after it emerged that it had issued a nomination certificate to businessman Rameshchandra Govino Gorasi as its candidate for the forthcoming by-election in Embakasi South constituency, following an announcement by Jubilee that it would not field a candidate. Mr Gorisa was the owner of Taj Mall (renamed Airgate Mall) that was demolished by the government last September after it was found to have been built on a road reserve. Another development likely to fuel more political excitement in the Mt Kenya region is the announcement by the Party of National Unity (PNU) that it would hold a National Executive Council (NEC) meeting on Tuesday to set dates for party elections to fill vacant and disputed positions.