- Mudavadi has declared he will not attend Bukhungu meeting where Raila may be endorsed for top seat.
- Raila confirmed he would be attending the convention as an invitee by a section of Luhya leaders
ODM leader Raila Odinga and his ANC counterpart Musalia Mudavadi are locked up in a bitter fight for the control of the Luhya vote block.
The political feuds could hit a fever pitch on Friday when Raila is hosted at a big political gathering by a section of Luhya leaders at the Bukhungu stadium.
At the meeting, Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya could be declared the Luhya spokesman.
The move could shred any possibility of the two teaming up again, setting the stage for a major political battle for Western Kenya
For months now, President Uhuru Kenyatta has relentlessly tried to reunite the former Nasa leaders but their differences continue to deepen.
"Go and look for friends who respect you Musalia and Wetangula. Look for friends who are trustable. Don't ever engage in a friendship like the other one you had [Nasa] of deception," Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala told his Party boss on Sunday.
While Mudavadi considers western his backyard, Raila has enormously been supported by the region in previous polls, particularly during the 2007, 2013, and 2017 polls.
A meeting convened by Central Organisation of Trade Unions (COTU) secretary-general Francis Atwoli on the eve of the New Year has only deepened the rivalry between the two former allies.
The much-hyped Bukhungu II meeting was ostensibly conceived by Atwoli to rally the Luhya community behind Raila ahead of the August 9 elections.
Raila has confirmed he will attend the Friday meeting.
“For a long time since independence, the community in western has been supporting its leaders but when they are just about to take the mantle of leading the country, some people become a stumbling block,” Mudavadi said during the Vihiga Cultural Day on Boxing Day.
“Someone who is not seeking any votes wants to take to the podium to say who will be the MCA in which ward, MP in which constituency, the senator in which county and president in this country. Let the people decide,” he said in reference to Atwoli.
Speaking on the same day at Atwoli's home in Khwisero, Kakamega County, Raila confirmed he would be attending the Bukhungu convention.
"As you have all heard, Atwoli has organised something big on December 31 in Kakamega town and I want to assure him that I will be there as one of the invitees," said Raila.
Mudavadi declared he will not attend the meeting.
On December 10, Mudavadi snubbed Raila's Azimio La Umoja convention at the Moi International Sports Centre Kasarani despite receiving a personal invitation.
The ANC leader wished Raila well and noted that he was a worthy competitor for the 2022 presidential race.
Political analyst Joseph Mutua believes Mudavadi has no weight in the battle for supremacy in western.
“He will lose in this battle because most Luhyas are still with Raila and they still think he is the man to give their votes because they have little regard for Deputy President William Ruto,” he said.
Mutua further said Raila is likely to outshine Mudavadi because the community believes he has better chances of ascending to the highest seat on land.
Former Kakamega senator Boni Khalwale alleged previous meetings convened by Atwoli at Bukhungu to unite the community had failed miserably.
“They assembled at Bukhungu Stadium and enthroned Mudavadi to a non-existent Luhya kingpin. They returned for the Bukhungu BBI rally of the null and void fame and now they want to come back again with Raila,” he stated.
Kimilili MP Didmus Barasa on the other hand asked the community to ignore the meeting saying it was in fact a threat to the unity of the region.
"I beseech the Luhya nation to ignore the Luhya meeting being convened by Mzee Atwoli at Bukhungu Stadium on the 31st. The COTU secretary-general is more dangerous than Covid-19 to the unity of the Mulembe Nation,” he said.
Prior to the 2017 General Elections, Atwoli openly endorsed the ANC leader as the region’s spokesperson in what is now termed as Bukhugu I.
At the time, Mudavadi was in the National Super Alliance alongside Wetangula and Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper) and they were rallying behind Raila's presidential candidature.
In 2020, however, Atwoli convened a Luyha unity meeting in his Kajiado residence and named Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya and Devolution Cabinet Secretary Eugene Wamalwa as the spokesmen of the Mulembe Nation.
During the Maragoli festival, Wetang'ula said it was time Luhyas supported one of their own.
“As a community, we have been selfless and generous to many people, but we have gotten little in return from those people. A lot of them think Mulembe nation as a ladder to use when getting fruits from a tree and when they are done they forget how many pegs were in the ladder.”
Leaders allied to ANC Party leader Musalia Mudavadi also came out strongly to oppose Atwoli's meeting.
“I want to say there is no meeting in Bukhungu Stadium on the 31st. We don't want brokers in Luhya politics,” Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala said.
National Cohesion and Integration Commission chairperson Samuel Kobia has already summoned Malala following his remarks that he will block the planned meeting at Bukhungu Stadium.
Atwoli, after hosting Raila took to social media to state he had a successful meeting with the ODM leader and politicians from western.
“I was delighted to host my brother Raila Odinga, today at my home in Khwisero, where we shared lunch and had a warm chat over many issues of mutual interest. I, equally, want to thank the more than 15 MPs who accompanied him for the lunch. God bless,” Atwoli said.
Leaders from the region captured by in the photo included Kakamega Governor Wycliffe Oparanya, Navakholo MP Emmanuel Wangwe, and Kakamega Women Rep Elsie Muhanda.
Interestingly, a section of MPs allied to Mudavadi was reported to have visited Atwoli in the evening after Raila left.