ANC leader and NASA champion Musalia Mudavadi reaped big on his Western tour when he received defectors.
Vihiga Senator George Khaniri, who has been gravitating towards ODM since the dissolution of UDF, joined Mudavadi on Saturday.
The high-ranking defection is a major boost to Mudavadi’s bargaining power in the opposition alliance, the soon-to-be launched NASA.
He also received seven MCAs from various parties in Vihiga, including the only MCA elected on Governor Moses Akaranga’s People’s Progressive Party ticket. Mudavadi and his Ford Kenya counterpart Moses Wetang’ula are locked in a fierce supremacy battle for the control of the Western vote bloc.
On December 31, the ANC leader was named the Luhya spokesman after he emerged the most popular Western leader ahead of Wetang’ula and Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya.
Mudavadi and Cord co-principals Raila Odinga (ODM), Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper) and Wetang’ula are all eyeing the NASA presidential ticket.
Sources said Wetang’ula and Water CS Eugene Wamalwa have met and agreed the latter runs for Trans Nzoia governor on the Ford Kenya ticket.
Mudavadi and Wetang’ula met in Karen last Monday and agreed to work together to ensure Western is delivered as a bloc to the opposition.
Lugari MP Ayub Savula said the defections being witnessed across the country indicate that ANC is the party of the moment.
“The symbolic importance of these defections is the acceptance that Mudavadi is the unassailable Western leader, who is consolidating the region as a voting bloc,” he said.
Savula said the shambolic manner in which other parties have handled their affairs and the lack of respect they have displayed to Kenyans makes ANC the alternative party of choice.
Mudavadi forewarned Jubilee of an impending “NASA armada” as he traversed Trans Nzoia and Vihiga counties with the NASA Kura campaign.
“NASA is an unstoppable armada as it conquers county after county. We are winning not only the hearts of the people, but their minds too because it is only NASA that will stop Jubilee from auctioning the country through high-level looting,” he said.
Mudavadi said it is suspicious the Registrar of Persons officers in Western have suddenly been sent on leave without replacements — so no one can get IDs and register to vote.
“There is much more to this than normal leave of these officers, because those seeking to register for IDs can no longer do so,” he said.
Mudavadi lambasted President Uhuru Kenyatta for allegedly presiding over issuing of fake title deeds to gein political mileage.
He said the President bears personal responsible for billions paid out by the government in a deal he personally oversaw in what amounts to fake acquisition of the land in Likoni, Mombasa county.