Cord plans to register as a single 'corporate' Cord Party, allowing affiliates to field candidates on their tickets in some areas and under Cord tickets in others.
The umbrella strategy aims to improve opposition chances of victory next year against the massive Jubilee Party machine — recently formed by the merger of affiliates.
It aims to strengthen Cord, keep it together and allay fears of widening cracks within the coalition. It is likely to resemble Narc, the political party that removed Kanu from power in 2002.
Cord has been buffeted by defections and its co-principals' claims on the presidential ticket. It faces a ferocious Jubilee onslaught in its traditional strongholds.
But Cord will not require affiliates to dissolve and merge, as did Jubilee, resulting in anxiety over nominations and discord over who will hold powerful interim positions.
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ODM, Wiper, Ford Kenya and 10 other affiliated parties will retain their identities.
All three Cord co-principals — Raila Odinga (ODM), Moses Wetang'ula (Ford Kenya) and Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper) — want to be President and the coalition's inability to settle on one standard bearer is a problem for strategists.
Cord's strategy is to allow affiliates to use their brands where they are unrivalled, but to use the Cord Party brand in battlegrounds with Jubilee.
However, all candidates will appear on the ballot as Cord candidates, irrespective of nominating parties.
Cord Management Committee co-chairs Senators James Orengo (Siaya) and Johnson Muthama (Machakos) yesterday said registration plans for the Cord Party are advanced.
The JP merger was difficult to pull off as affiliates feared loss of identity and bargaining power. Disputes over leadership posts have not been resolved — for now JAP officials retain their posts. Members have expressed fears primaries will not be fair.
Jubilee Party was officially launched on September 10, as President Uhuru Kenyatta's re-election outfit.
Once Cord becomes a party, the co-principals will be given an equal chance to seek the presidential ticket.
While one co-principal will be presidential flagbearer and and another his running mate, a third powerful position in government, like that of Prime Minister, would be reserved for the third co-principal, along with plenty of appointments. A tempting consolation prize.
“We had reserved the name Cord with the Registrar of Political Parties. Plans are almost complete. We will use the ticket to field joint candidates in all elective positions countrywide," Orengo told a press conference yesterday at Parliament Buildings.
He said Cord will soon hold NEC meetings so parties can ratify resolutions forming the big party on which ticket they will field candidates for President and all other seats.
“Cord is going to remain intact and pursue our interest as one political entity. We will have single candidates, excluding the possibility of each party having their own candidates," he said.
Orengo said the idea was fronted because it was not possible to dissolve the parties, as they are established not only to pursue power but also for other interests, including environmental issues.
He called Cord a unique coalition that has been able to weather pre-election and post-election turbulence to pursue a joint manifesto and election strategy.
Muthama said Cord decided to transform itself into a political party to avert fall out and give Jubilee a run for its money.
“A strong and united opposition party will fight negative ethnicity and give marginalised tribes like the Oromo and Pokomo an opportunity to rise in the country's political leadership."
But the plan still leaves Cord grappling with the thorny issue of nominations.
The wobbly situation in the opposition coalition played out yesterday as leaders disagreed whether ODM, Wiper and Ford Kenya should field parallel candidates or sponsor joint tickets for all positions.
But there is consensus on a joint presidential ticket nomination among the co-principals.
Ford Kenya, through deputy party leader Boni Khalwale, yesterday revealed a ticking time bomb when he said the party will field its own candidates countryside.
“Ford Kenya will field candidates for governors, senators, MPs and MCAs," the Kakamega senator told a press conference at Parliament Buildings.
The announcement came a day after Wiper on Tuesday declared it will field candidates for all positions countrywide, except President.
"We have not marked any region as the preserve of a certain coalition party," Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar said after the party’s National Executive Council meeting in Nairobi.
Kalonzo has also urged formation of a single Cord Party to boost opposition chances of victory.
"We are considering the Narc arrangement. But a technical committee is working on a method of picking the Cord Presidential candidate," Kalonzo said on Monday.
Ford Kenya also called for negotiated democracy in mapping all Nairobi wards and constituencies to allow coalition parties to field candidates where they are popular, to avoid losing to JP.
Khalwale said coalition partners must agree on fielding candidates in "unique" Nairobi county.
“No specific ethnic group can lay claim to Nairobi, we will fight it out in all other areas. But if you lock out candidates from another party, you fuel voter apathy," he said.
Given that positions of Cord flagbearer and running mate will be available to two co-principals, Ford Kenya proposes a reserved, negotiated position within Cord's ‘government’ for the third co-principal — including his party’s share in appointments.
Whoever — Raila, Kalonzo or Wetang'ula — loses out on the presidential ticket will be named to a powerful post equivalent to that of de fact Prime Minister. He would be in charge of coordinating government business, as in the Grand Coalition.
Orengo said the coalition will establish an elections board to manage primaries.
“We will hold joint nominations, we will not be foolish enough to be misled to present different tickets because that cost us seats, especially in Nairobi, in 2013," he said.
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