DP Ruto's headache in internal Jubilee polls

Battle lines are drawn within the ruling Jubilee Party as Deputy President William Ruto plots to use the upcoming party elections to put his allies in key positions.

Multiple sources within his camp have confided to the Star that Ruto who is eyeing to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta after his second and last term comes to an end in 2022, is planning to take full control of the party they formed in the run-up to the 2017 elections.

The Jubilee Party elections which are slated for March next year are billed to be a do or die for the DP as he will be using the elections to put into office individuals who will take care of his interest.

However, his nightmare, it is understood, is how the party will pick delegates from all the 47 counties his fears being the possibility of his competitors likely to gang up and frustrate his Jubilee takeover plans.

The new national officials will be elected by 19 delegates from each of the 47 counties.

There are fears that anti-Ruto strongholds like Coast and Nyanza can team up with Central Kenya, a region where some leaders have vehemently opposed Ruto's candidature to wrestle away the party.

Since the handshake between Uhuru and ODM leader Raila Odinga in March last year, two factions have emerged in Jubilee; team Tanga Tanga and team Kieleweke.

The anti-Ruto forces within and out of government are understood to be planning to use the Jubilee elections in influencing the delegates who will be participating in the voting process.

The party's Secretary General Raphael Tuju has fallen out with Ruto who has come out on several occasions accusing him (Tuju) of working with his competitors ahead of 2022 presidential race.

Ruto's allies say Tuju is among a cabal of powerful elites within Jubilee who are sabotaging their man.

On Sunday last week during an interview on K24 TV, Ruto gave the clearest indication that he will not allow outside forces to destroy the party that was formed as a major of over 10 parties.

“Nobody will succeed to break Jubilee. I’m very confident because the President and I made a conscious decision that we were going to build a national party. The Jubilee Party is not meant for elections only or seeking power but it is a party that is meant for uniting Kenyans,” he said.

Tuju who of late has been under fire from Ruto allies, downplayed underhand dealings during the elections saying it will be guided by the Party Constitution.

“We will be guided by the Constitution and the interim clauses that give powers to the party leader," he said.

Political analyst Isaac Wabuge is of the opinion the elections present yet another platform for warring factions to outdo each other in a supremacy contest.

He pointed out that it is easy to say the Jubilee Party is in a crisis with the party leader and his deputy pulling in different directions going by the bare-knuckle confrontations from their trusted lieutenants and the Presidents silence to call for the party Parliamentary Group meeting.

“The recent thinly veiled attack by Ruto to Tuju is a clear indicator of a divided house. The last time Jubilee Party attempted an election was marred with blows, bitter exchange of words and assertions of marred rigging with the majority of losers during the Party elections and party nomination pointing an accusing finger at the DP,” he explained.

He added that there is the possibility that the March 2020 elections will not see the light of day.

“The Jubilee house is headed for a bitter divorce. The right thing for DP William Ruto to do now is to read the writings on the wall and jump ship, resign from the government and form his own party in readiness to 2020. After all, in Africa, we don't have party ideologies but rather parties are used to get one to power,” he further explained.

And as Martin Sheen put it"Future generations are not going to ask us what political parties we were in. They are going to ask what did you do about it when you knew the glaciers were melting! Who will stand in the gap for the next generation!”

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