- Rutto was picked by a chopper from his rural home in Bomet for a meeting with the President.
- Raila calls a meeting with top party organ, CMC, to seal the deal with Uhuru.
Image: FILE
President Uhuru Kenyatta has kicked off an aggressive strategy to whittle down Deputy President William Ruto's influence in the Rift Valley.
Days after sealing a post-election coalition agreement with Ruto's political nemesis and Kanu chairman Gideon Moi, Uhuru has grabbed another key Rift Valley bigwig, former Bomet Governor Isaac Rutto.
This as it emerged that Opposition chief Raila Odinga has called a critical meeting of the party's Central Management Committee on Thursday to strike a deal on a working arrangement with Jubilee.
On Wednesday, the President held talks with Rutto at State House in what is seen as another political masterstroke to fortify his government amidst an apparent divorce with his deputy.
Rutto was picked by a chopper from his rural home in Bomet for a meeting with the President.
However, in a statement through his CCM party, Rutto admitted he was picked by a helicopter but denied he was to meet the President.
He said he accompanied his wife who was being airlifted to Nairobi as an essential service provider.
"I wish to set the record straight that my travel had nothing to do with the political realignments in the country, as is being speculated in social media," Rutto said.
The ex-Bomet governor who is also the leader of Chama Cha Mashinani could complicate DPRuto's bid to consolidate the Rift Valley for his State House bid.
“The Rift Valley will now become noticeably fragmented for Ruto, the ground in which he hitherto could be the boss would shift,” said former Cabinet minister Franklin Bett.
He said the President was determined to get into a coalition with as many parties as possible to secure his legacy.
“Ruto made a big mistake to allow his foot soldiers to insult the President. He never reprimanded them when they claimed they had numbers. Numbers for what? Numbers against the President? Uhuru is hitting back,” Bett said.
Rutto, who dumped Jubilee ahead of the 2017 polls and formed his CCM party, is being brought on board by the President as part of an elaborate scheme to significantly cut the DP to size in his own turf.
Kanu, the Independence party, signed a post-election coalition with Jubilee on May 2. Ruto's camp has challenged the coalition agreement at the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal terming it illegal.
The Star has established that Rutto's CCM party could soon enter into a post-election coalition agreement with Jubilee, just like Kanu did, as Uhuru's sets the stage to annihilate his DP.
Rutto has been a thorn in the DP's flesh ever since losing the Bomet gubernatorial seat to the late Joyce Laboso, a defeat that the ex-Council of Governors chairman blamed on Ruto's machinations.
Politicians and analysts admit that a combination of Rutto and Gideon could provide Uhuru with a stronger layer of political insulation against an anticipated backlash in the Rift Valley over his falling-out with Ruto.
It is understood that Uhuru would soon unveil what his allies call a 'succession Cabinet', a broad-based Government of National Unity that would include other key Opposition leaders.
Tiaty MP William Kamket said the President was determined to vanquish his deputy completely and that it was no longer a secret that Ruto had fallen out of favour.
“Ruto is currently technically sacked,” declared the Kanu lawmaker who is a key ally of Gideon and an ardent backer of a unity government.
Describing Ruto as a politician whose influence was neither threatening nor effectual, Kamket said the DP was just a “ paper tiger.”
Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu, a key confidant of the President, blamed Ruto for his woes saying the DP thought he had imaginary powers equal to the President.
“The DP had started to act as if he was the co-president. He was never a co-president and when the reality is happening I don't know why people are feeling they are been cut down to size,” he said.
As the President edges out Ruto, Raila, Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi and Wiper boss Kalonzo Musyoka are set to join the GNU to be unveiled soon.
Sources said Uhuru had already requested Raila, Kalonzo and Musalia to submit two names each of individuals they wanted to be named to the Cabinet.
However, Raila's push for the consideration of parliamentary strength of each political party at the negotiating table is said to have delayed the unveiling of the unity government.
National Assembly Minority Whip Junet Mohamed, a key confidant of Raila, without referring to the nitty-gritty of the ongoing negotiations, hinted at an impending political rearrangement.
“Why is Tangatanga opposing the Kanu-Jubilee coalition? New coalitions and alliances are just about to start. This is the problem of living in denial. You get stuck in a past that no longer exists. Things have changed. Kenya has changed. Siasa bado (we are yet to see more politics),” Junet tweeted.
Sources said there was palpable tension in the Executive amid reports of a looming shake-up that would see a couple of CS dropped to pave the way for the 'big boys' in a new-look unity government.
Other CSs could be reassigned new dockets with the reshuffle likely to also target key plum posts in state agencies and parastatals.
While Kalonzo wants to join the Cabinet, Raila is said to have asked for a bigger stake including four Cabinet slots and control over parastatals.
The Central Management Committee meeting of Raila's ODM is expected to make a final decision on whether the party should sign a post-election coalition agreement with Jubilee.
The team will also agree on ODM's stake in government following the President's offer to Raila.
“Today's meeting will explore all the cards on the table and agree on the modus operandi with the President,” said a senior ODM official who sought anonymity over the sensitivity of the matter.
The creation of the GNU, whose negotiations have been on for months, is aimed at steadying the shaky Jubilee government following a falling-out in the Executive between Uhuru and Ruto.
Ngunjiri downplayed claims that the President was reaching out to Ruto's adversaries to whittle down his clout.
“What the President is doing by bringing on board Rutto and others is not strange. The president is unifying the country,” Wambugu said.
Edited by Henry Makori