Ruto, Gideon rivalry escalates after DP 'coronation'

A fresh battle of supremacy between Deputy President William Ruto and Baringo Senator Gideon Moi has emerged after DP's coronation in a dawn meeting with Nandi elders on Friday.

Talai elders on Friday crowned DP Ruto as the region's political kingpin by giving him a leadership baton. The Deputy President was also covered with 'Sambut', a special regalia similar to the one they gave former President Daniel arap Moi and then powerful Minister Nicholas Biwott (both deceased).

SECRET MEETING

The dawn secret meeting has not been received well by Senator Moi’s allies who have termed the installation as 'political desperation' meant to seek sympathy from the Kalenjin community as President Uhuru Kenyatta continues to with the purge on key cronies of Dr Ruto.

Kanu Secretary-General Nick Salat on Sunday told the Nation that it is now evident that since 2013, DP Ruto has never had interest of the community but has been only pushing his selfish agenda. He added that Kanu will continue to champion interests of the President.

He said that the same elders who claim to have installed Dr Ruto as the region's political kingpin have been planning to meet the younger Moi to bless him ahead of 2022.  

He said that the former ruling party respects President Uhuru Kenyatta’s ban on political meetings.

"The DP has been accusing others for visiting shrines but what happened on Friday in Nandi County is a sign of desperation and it is double-standards to the biblical teachings he has been referring to, he wants the community to sympathise with him as the President axes his allies who are working against his agenda, in fact, no one in Rift Valley will be remorseful for what is happening to DP,” said Mr Salat.

"These elders have been around ever since, it is clear that he (Dr Ruto)  has been lying to people that he commands the region, the Friday's meeting has no impact on our political game plan," he added.

PERFORMED RITUALS

The elders performed traditional rituals to remove bad omen which could spoil DP's chances of succeeding President Kenyatta.

"DP is keen on mending fences with critics as prepares to fight for presidency and succeed his boss come 2020," said a source who attended the meeting.

Aldai MP Cornelius Serem who accompanied the DP to Kapsisiywa village in Nandi County on Sunday told Nation that the meeting was a courtesy call and no coronation took place.

He, however, said the team which accompanied DP Ruto to Nandi was preparing the official coronation of the DP ahead 2022 succession politics. He noted that Dr Ruto is the region’s political kingpin, having been installed in 2006 by elders.

"The media is making it a big issue but it was just a courtesy call where elders prepared for us tea, why should we crown our leader in a private meeting? By the way, he is the kingpin of Rift Valley because he was crowned in 2006 when Moi was alive and we are planning for the elders to bless him publicly after this virus crisis," said Mr Serem.

Others who accompanied Dr Ruto were: Nandi Governor Stephen Sang and his Uasin Gishu counterpart Jackson Mandago, MPs Julius Meli (Tinderet), Caleb Kositany (Soy), Wilson Kogo (Chesumei).

This comes as political realignments emerges in the vote-rich region with independence party Kanu and Chama Cha Mashinani (CCM) on one side and Dr Ruto and his allies on the other end, a move which is likely to reshape of 2022 succession politics.

Kanu, under Baringo Senator and CCM led by former Bomet Governor Isaac Ruto have joined forces to slash a pie of Jubilee Party dominance in the region following the widening rift between President Kenyatta and his deputy.

The Uhuru-Gideon-Isaac relationship has opened political battle to control the Rift Valley politics.

REMAIN RELEVANT

Although Dr Ruto has kept low profile since his boss axed his key allies from their Senate plum leadership positions, political analysts are of the opinion that he could be scheming on how to remain relevant and keep alive his 2022 Statehouse bid.

Early this year, the President went ahead to isolate his deputy in the vote-rich Rift Valley by appointing Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Alex Tolgos, a crony of the Senator, to spearhead Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) campaigns in DP's political bastion, a move which caused jitters among the Dr Ruto's allies. Kanu is already wooing influential leaders in the region.

The DP is now facing a litmus test in solidifying his Rift Valley political bedrock as Kanu and CCM make forays of the vote-rich region ahead of 2022.   

Kanu and CCM are banking on the widening rift in Jubilee with some Jubilee rebels among them MPs: Joshua Kutuny (Cherangany) and Sila Tiren (Moiben) and Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Alex Tolgos openly working with Senator Moi and will spearhead the BBI agenda in the region

PRESIDENTIAL BID

Political analysts are of the view that the newly founded Jubilee-Kanu relationship gives the independence party an opportunity to wrest the region support from DP's camp even though Dr Ruto's lieutenants claiming that Rift Valley is behind him in totality.

But some MPs and Senators from Rift Valley early this early had hit out at some leaders from the Kalenjin community whom they said were being used to scuttle DP’s 2022 presidential bid.

 “Let’s not be brokers as leaders. We should speak in one voice. The DP is the only Rift Valley defacto leader. There’s no contest in Rift Valley. We are very settled here. Contests only exists in pages of newspapers,” said Aaron Cheruiyot, Kericho County senator in an earlier interview.

Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei had intimated that Members of the County Assembly (MCAs) and opinion shapers will be enlisted in popularising Dr Ruto’s Presidential bid.

 “We have drawn an inclusive plan to consolidate support the DP and those opposed to his candidature are spoilers,” said Mr Cherargei.

BETRAYERS

He termed the perceived Jubilee party rebels from Rift Valley as betrayers noting that they have dug their own political graves.

For Belgut MP Nelson Koech, those leaders from the region who are inking deals with President Kenyatta are what he termed 'inconsequential'.  

"Those purporting to gravitate towards the President now from our region are inconsequential and had they been of any input, the Head of State would have gone for them initially in 2013 and 2017. Any pact they enter into is for the sake of themselves and their family members," said the Belgut MP.

Keiyo South MP Daniel Rono said even though the President is using Baringo Senator and Mr Ruto to isolate his deputy in Rift Valley, he will not succeed since the alliances being made have little impact in the region.

"We have seen the President trying to isolate DP Ruto in our region, let him know that it will never succeed. He is campaigning for Dr Ruto indirectly," said Mr Rono.

The former Bomet county chief, a critic of Deputy President recently described the Jubilee purge in the Senate and National Assembly leadership as a normal party disciplinary process.

"A president cannot run a government with a Parliament that is not disciplined, a party with members who openly defy him to the extent of abusing him in public," said CCM boss.

POLITICAL SIGNIFICANCE

Whereas some leaders in the vote-rich region say the move has no political significance, others are of the opinion that it will shape the region’s political landscape ahead of 2022.

After marking its 60 anniversary, the Jogoo Party after inking a deal with the ruling Jubilee Party, it shifted focus on consolidating the vote-rich Rift Valley ahead of 2022.  

Younger Moi recently met five leaders from the region in Kabarak and discussed raft of issues including how the Baringo Senator can build bridges with other prominent figures in the region to increase his chances of succeeding President Kenyatta.

Cherang'any MP accused Dr Ruto for failing the Kalenjin community in terms of working closely with other tribes for the sake of the community's political position in future. He said they agreed on ways of “doing what DP Ruto has not done.”

 “We discussed the leadership of the region, DP has been lying to the community that he had a plan for how the community will take over the leadership of this country and we have realised that he had no plan, instead of building bridges, he has been destroying bridges. We are now focused on how to wrest the region from DP because he has failed the community,” said Mr Kutuny.

He also intimated that they have been having other closed-door meetings and they plan to hold more in the coming days to strategise on how to get the region from Dr Ruto’s grip.

AGRICULTURAL REFORMS.

MP Kutuny said with the newfound Uhuru-Gideon relationship, they would push for more agricultural reforms.

 “Another thing which came up during the meeting is how we are going to support the new leadership in the Senate as well as issues affecting the community including stalled projects in

Senator Moi and the DP have for long had a protracted battle to control the Rift Valley vote ahead of the 2022 polls. Already, Kanu has intensified a grassroots campaign drive in a bid to solidify its popularity.

 Indeed Senator's allies including Tiaty MP William Kamket have hinted to this.

“Just watch this space. In politics, we only converge where our interests meet. Kanu will be a party to watch in 2022,' said Mr Kamket.

He said Kanu will soon roll out a rigorous grassroots registration of new members ahead of 2022.

The Nation has established that after public gatherings were banned due to the Covid-19 outbreak, Kanu rolled out online campaigns seeking to revamp itself ahead of the 2022 General Election.

The death of Moi, who had been the kingpin in the Rift Valley since 1950s has created a vacuum which has intensified supremacy battle between his son Senator Moi and DP to fill the void.