- Kutuny said he is ready to part ways with the Kanu chairman whom he accuses of frustrating Kalenjins perceived to be allied to Ruto.
- The MP, however, insisted that his feud with Gideon did not mean he would support Ruto.
Image: MATHEWS NDANYI
The political feud between Baringo Senator Gideon Moi and Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny threatens to cause deeper splits in the Rift Valley.
Kutuny has told his supporters he believes Gideon is not a better alternative to DP William Ruto.
Gideon has not responded to the attacks from the MP but sources indicate that efforts by friends to reconcile the two have flopped.
Tiaty MP William Kamket, a close ally of Gideon, dismissed Kutuny’s allegations as baseless and accused the MP of trying to use Gideon to push a selfish agenda.
Kamket met allies of Gideon including Moiben MP Sila Tiren and Elgeyo Marakwet Governor Alex Tolgos but they failed to agree on issues raised by Kutuny against the Baringo senator.
Kutuny has insisted he is ready to part ways with the Kanu chairman whom he accuses of frustrating Kalenjins perceived to be allied to Ruto.
He says he will not be a party to schemes by the Baringo senator to identify and sack from government elites from Rift Valley who were either helped to get jobs by the DP or are currently allied to him.
“If we have to move forward then we have to agree that the interests of our people come first. But I'm ready to severe political ties with Gideon if that will be the cost of me standing up for the truth and defend our people,” Kutuny said.
He accused Gideon of trying to mislead President Uhuru Kenyatta to sack Ruto's allies so that they are replaced by his close allies from Baringo.
The MP, however, insisted that his feud with Gideon did not mean he would support Ruto but his main focus was the interest of the community.
At the weekend Kuttuny was at Osorongai in his Cherangany constituency where he said Gideon was not fit to lead the Kalenjin community as the Baringo senator harboured selfish interests which cannot benefit the community.
Kutuny was in the area to commission a rural electrification project. He intensified attacks on Gideon, who, like Ruto, is interested in the presidency.
“If he thinks he is the one to lead us to Canaan then that is misplaced because he should first go to Baringo and put his own house in order before thinking of leading the community,” Kutuny said.
The latest feud between the two may further cause splits in Rift Valley politics with the possible emergence of a third political force in the region.
Gideon has been tussling with Ruto over control of politics in the region, but turmoil has erupted in the camp led by the Baringo Senator whose network of supporters is threatened with disintegration ahead of the 2022 polls.
“It’s not a must that we support anyone. Our concern will remain the welfare of our people like farmers, as has been the case,” Kuttuny said.
The vocal legislator and a fierce critic of the DP told the Star, “Gideon is now an enemy of the people of Rift Valley. He is identifying civil servants especially CEOs and managing directors from the region then engineering their sacking on the basis that they are allied to the DP.”
Kutuny is the face of Jubilee's Kieleweke faction in the expansive Rift Valley.
The genesis of the fallout between Kutuny and Gideon is the changes made at the Kenya Rural Roads Authority recently.
According to Kutuny, they had agreed that Luka Kimeli, the former Kura managing director and a Cherang’any constituent, be confirmed as the substantive director general.
However, he claims Gideon went against the deal "which had been endorsed by the President" and instead influenced the appointment of Philemon Kandie to the post. Kandie is from Baringo.
“We met and agreed that Kimeli will be confirmed but I was surprised to see a different name. Gideon wants to eat the fruits of Kieleweke yet he is a passive member. In fact, he has not participated in it but now wants to be the one controlling our plans,” he said.
“This was the point of departure between me and Gideon and we will deal with him and his Kanu if this is his style of leadership.”
Kutuny also accused Gideon of engineering changes at the Kenya Power board which saw former Nandi Woman Representative Zipporah Kering sacked, among others.
“Gideon has been identifying Kalenjins who are perceived to support Ruto then he sacrifices them so that he gets to appoint those who come from his home county and who are loyal to him. Going forward, we will not allow anyone from Rift Valley to be removed,” the MP said.
Edited by Henry Makori