- President Uhuru Kenyatta pleaded with ODM leader Raila Odinga to support Tuju.
- The ex-CS yet to train guns on a seat, says surrounded by flurry of options.
Image: JACK OWUOR
Former Jubilee secretary general Raphael Tuju has kept Kenyans guessing his next political move after quitting the post last Saturday.
President Uhuru Kenyatta let the cat out of the bag on the former Cabinet Secretary’s political plans in his plea to ODM leader Raila Odinga to support Tuju.
“This man Tuju loves his country. Please I hand him over to you ODM on whatever he is looking for. He is our man and don't frustrate him," Uhuru said, asking Tuju to consider remaining at the Jubilee NEC.
At the same time, Uhuru asked Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho—the ODM deputy party leader—to hold Tuju's hand through the political process.
The developments have elicited the debate on the former Rarieda MP's next move after the surprise revelations at the Jubilee National Delegates Conference.
The Star has established that the ex-Jubilee secretary general quietly handed his resignation to President Kenyatta, paving the way for him to seek a political seat.
Unlike his counterparts Sicily Kariuki (Water), John Munyes (Petroleum), Charles Keter (Energy), and Adan Mohamed (EAC) who announced their resignations, Tuju chose a low profile exit.
He told the Star on Monday that he was the first to hand in his resignation to the President in writing, having developed an interest to seek a seat in the August poll.
“I was the first one to tell the President that I was leaving,” he said on the phone following an enquiry on his next political move.
Asked about his plans for August, the CS was not categorical on which seat he had in mind, only he was consulting significant political leaders.
“I have always been a team player. I will consult people who are significant in the arena of politics. There are still a couple of weeks to the time of presenting the nomination papers. I still have enough time to consult,” he said.
“I have been working and will continue working in an ecosystem. I want to be disruptive in that ecosystem. I want to play a facilitative role and therefore if I have to take an active political role, it will have to be after thorough consultation within the particular ecosystem,” Tuju said.
There is talk that President Kenyatta is pitching for Tuju to succeed Cornel Rasanga as Siaya Governor.
Senator James Orengo, a staunch Raila ally, is touted as the frontrunner in the race which is slowly taking shape.
Other options are that he goes for the Rarieda MP seat currently held by Otiende Amollo with others saying the ex-Jubilee SG could as well do well as MP Kibra or Langata or Nairobi governor or Siaya Senator.
Asked where his heart is, Tuju said, “There would be consultations as God would guide my footsteps. I have so many choices. Not everybody has the options as I do. In all the places, I am fairly competitive.”
He held that the election or choice of seat would not be about him “but where I can make the most difference.”
“It is a miracle that I am now considering an elective position while just a year ago I was being seen as good as dead. If it was just a matter of me, I would just go for any seat for the sake of myself but I am looking at where I can make the most difference,” Tuju said.
The ex-Jubilee SG further exuded confidence that whichever seat he’d settle on, he would not have challenges hitting the ground running.
“I know how to go to the ground. I have campaigned for two presidents, meaning I have succeeded four times.”
Tuju is hailed for the overnight transformation of Rarieda constituency during the Mwai Kibaki administration.
During his short stint as MP, he was credited with connected the villages to the main electricity grid, and delivering the constituency’s first tarmac road.
Other developments that marked his legacy included access to healthcare and clean sources of water in the area.
“My profile in terms of community service and helping needy causes is also known. The other day when I raised money for Kijabe hospital, I did not consider that it was not in my home county.”
“Nobody directed me to where to put the money yet I had a choice. When your commitment is about community service and service to others, it doesn’t really matter as long as you do it to humanity,” Tuju said.
-Edited by SKanyara