The declaration by the ruling Jubilee Party that they will depose a candidate in the Kibra interrupted elections on November 7 further revealed internal conflicts within the party led by President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Nearly hours after Secretary General Raphael Tuju issued a statement inviting candidates to submit party tickets on Monday, a letter said to have been sent to the electoral body had five names written, including football star McDonald Mariga.
The others on the list are Mr. Morris Peter Kinyanjui, Mr. Mikinyingi Walter Trenk, Mr. Said Ibrahim and Mrs. Doreen Nangame Wasike.
The emergence of this list further reveals the fundamental tensions within the party caused by the cold war felt between Kenyatta and his deputy, William Ruto.
The Independent Election and Limits Commission (IEBC) wrote to the party seeking clarification on the letter it received on Monday.
In a brief statement on Tuesday, the agency confirmed receiving the letter but noted that the letter had been written to the party and forwarded copies of it for “further information and action”.
“The Commission received a letter on Monday, 26 August 2019 at 5 pm, continuing the names of the Jubilee Party candidates for Kibra through elections. However, it has come to the Commission’s attention that the Jubilee Party has denied writing the letter and calling it a fake, “said the IEBC.
“As a result, the commission has written to those who forward copies of letters for party information and further action,” he added.
The letter was addressed to IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati. State House digital strategist and blogger Dennis Itumbi was the first to distribute it on social media. It reads, “Following your notice of the Kibra constituency vacancy, Nairobi District on August 16, 2019, the Jubilee party hereby announces to you the name, identification card number, and gender of our candidates for your actions.”
However, when contacted for comment, Tuju denied writing the letter, only saying that he had issued a press statement on Monday indicating that the party would nominate candidates in the Kibra mid-term election.
“I just gave a press conference to tell those who are interested in fighting to contact because we will not do the normal nomination process where people line up or vote or whatever,” he said. “We will be the interview process whose deadline is Friday.”
In a letter to the IEBC he said: “Some people who are busy somewhere try to do something that I don’t understand. I will investigate.”
“The signature is fake. Well, I sign like that for certain types of communication but for official communication to IEBC there is a special signature with a secret code that is not that, “he added.
He revealed that the IEBC first told him about the letter but was reluctant to admit it “because they detected the signature did not have a normal secret code”.
Tuesday, Deputy Secretary General Jubilee Caleb Kositany appeared to read from a different script.
Mr Kositany, a member of parliament for Soybean, appeared to prove the authenticity of the list, saying, “They are part of the candidates who have expressed interest and others are still to come. So let’s just wait until we clear the process. “
Meanwhile, ODM Secretary General Edwin Sifuna expressed his confidence that the party would reclaim the seat.
“Let’s meet at the vote,” Mr Sifuna told Jubilee and others who had expressed interest in the chair.
Mr. Okoth died of colorectal cancer on July 26.