TALKS between Prime Minister Raila Odinga and William Ruto have caused a rift among the Eldoret North MP's supporters. Ruto last week admitted that he had held secret meetings with Raila to discuss a pre-poll pact but denied that he was considering returning to ODM.
"I have not met him at all but I will hold meetings with him and other presidential candidates because I want them to back me next year", said Ruto on the morning talk show on Kass FM.
However, some MPs sympathetic to Ruto's United Republican Party expressed concern about the talks saying they had not been consulted.
The MPs have now demanded a special meeting to discuss the possible alliance with ODM. However Ruto reportedly refused to discuss the matter with them.
"I have made it clear that I will not be part to any arrangement because we left ODM with a reason and nothing has changed. We have no reason to go back there," said Cheranganyi MP Joshua Kutuny.
He warned that the meeting with Raila had sent mixed signals to the URP supporters. He said the party could lose support in the Rift region if party members did not get a proper explanation.
Ruto and URP chairman Francis Ole Kaparo are expected to call a meeting of the party's national executive council in Nairobi next week to discuss the matter.
Callers to Kass FM demanded a detailed explanation of his meeting with Raila. He deflected the question by saying he would meet all political leaders but that did not mean he was planning to back another aspirant in the presidential race.
"We, as URP, are in the race to the end. But we must realize that we cannot win on our own and that is why I am meeting many of the other leaders from the regions to urge them to support me", said Ruto.
He pointed out that the recent Gallup opinion Poll had given him a favorable rating close to Raila and Deputy PM Uhuru Kenyatta. "That means we are doing well and there is nothing like me backing someone else. Its them to back me this time", said Ruto.
Wareng county council chairman Paul Kiprop, a close ally of Ruto, said the media and ODM were overplaying the meeting for propaganda purposes.
"We should tell our people the truth. Even if they met as leaders, we are not going to ODM and Ruto has already explained the position," said Kiprop.
Mosop MP David Koech, chairman of the Rift Valley MPs forum, said URP was a stable party that cannot be shaken by rumours. "The issue is not a major one in our party and we have the capacity to handle such issues," said Koech.
Other political leaders in the region have accused Ruto of trying to "auction" the Kalenjin community for his own gains. "The people in this region are not ready to be twisted left and right politically. Ruto stands to lose from the political games he is playing with the community," said Paul Kibet, Kanu chairman in Keiyo.