Opposition leaders have said the selection of a flag bearer to face Kenya Kwanza leader William Ruto will not happen as a simple boardroom arrangement.
Jubilee’s Dr Fred Matiang’i, People’s Liberation Party’s Martha Karua, and Siaya Governor James Orengo of the Orange Democratic Movement all argued that the opposition must first meet, deliberate among themselves, and agree on the candidate most likely to win the backing of Kenyans.
The leaders, who attended a church service at Apondo SDA Church in Nyando, Kisumu County, said the process will go beyond their own discussions. They added that the wider public will also play a role in deciding who should represent the opposition in next year’s presidential contest.
“Choosing our flag bearer will not be based on tribal inclination. The person we select will be someone the majority of Kenyans feel can work for them. This decision will not be made by me and my brothers alone. We shall come to you, and your opinions will be considered in determining who is the best pick,” Karua said.
She further stated that the flag bearer must have a proven track record from previous roles and must be able to deliver for the people of Kenya.
The PLP leader presented herself as the best candidate to challenge President Ruto, citing her achievements in the Ministry of Water as well as her tenure in the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.
At the same time, Martha Karua urged the clergy to convene a national security conference to address the many problems facing the country.
On his part, Governor Orengo said the fact that the leaders now share platforms show they have begun discussions. However, he added that their talks will not stop at picking a flag bearer. He said they also plan to focus on what he described as the country’s wider needs.
“Whatever we will be doing is not only about choosing the next President or the next leader. Even Idi Amin and Jean-Bedel Bokassa were presidents. We are talking about making Kenya a better country. We will sit to find out what is good for Kenya so that when we elect a leader, he or she will act in accordance with whatever proposals we have made. We are saying this because things have gone wrong in this country,” Orengo said.
The Siaya governor also said he would represent the interests of the Luo community after other senior politicians from the region, including ODM party leader Oburu Oginga and Homa Bay Governor Gladys Wanga, pursue county-level seats. He claimed that, without those figures at the national table, the community would need a representative at the top level.
He added: “The other camp only focuses on their stomachs. Oburu is going for Siaya Senatorial seat; Wanga is going to Homa Bay, yet the Luo community does not have a representative at the national table. It is only me who is left. From today, you should know that Orengo is a presidential candidate.”
Meanwhile, Fred Matiang’i urged leaders from Nyanza to unite as a region in the same spirit that existed under the late Raila Odinga, and then to engage the rest of the country.
“Like Orengo has said, we must sit and talk as the opposition. Raila did all he could to unite us. As Nyanza, we must build on this, speak with one voice before engaging other friends from outside. I never heard Raila spewing vile or threatening fellow leaders who differed with him,” Matiang’i said.
The leaders also called for the removal of the County Commander of Police in Kisii over the attack on ODM leaders aligned to the Linda Mwananchi faction. They said the convoy was pelted with stones on Friday.
Dr Matiang’i warned that the country was slipping toward disorder, saying he could not accept that uniformed officers stood by as leaders faced stones. He also questioned how local security teams could respond without prior intelligence.
“We are slowly sliding into anarchy. I could not believe that in a democratic country, leaders are being pelted by stones and uniformed police are just watching. I have been the minister of Interior and you cannot convince me that the county security team did not have an intelligence report on this. If they did not, then the County Commander should be sacked,” he said.
He further criticized the government for its reported efforts to track critics through phone records, arguing that authorities failed to arrest alleged perpetrators of violence.
Matiang’i also accused President Ruto of condoning criminal acts, pointing to what he described as the lack of action against Youth Affairs and Creative Economy Principal Secretary Fikirini Jacobs following the killing of a youth mobilizer in Kariokor, Nairobi, this week.
“If a person can be killed inside a Principal Secretary’s car, and all he does is address the press saying he will cooperate with the investigators, he should be in police custody. If we don’t stop this chaos, we will lose our country,” Matiang’i said.
