• Washiali told Malala to tone down and allow the principals to negotiate on the way forward for the outfit.
• Malala told off Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua for saying the running mate slot is a preserve of the Mt Kenya region.
Image: FILE
Mumias East MP Benjamin Washiali has warned Kakamega Senator Cleophas Malala against making remarks that may antagonize Kenya Kwanza Alliance leaders.
The MP who spoke to KTN news on Saturday said Malala's demand that ANC leader Musalia Mudavadi must be the Kenya Kwanza running mate in the event deputy president William Ruto is picked for the presidency risks destroying the coalition.
He told Malala to tone down and allow the principals to negotiate on the way forward for the outfit.
Washiali added that it is better for the Western region to be in government where a portion of their interests will be sorted rather than languishing in opposition where they will get nothing.
"Malala has become so vocal to a level that he is being seen as more influential in the Western region than anybody else. I want to urge him to go slow," he said.
"We are confident in the three Kenya Kwanza Alliance Principals who united to form a coalition. It is better to have a quarter of the government than get nothing."
The MP, who has said he will not vie for any elective seat in the August 9 polls, faulted Malala for the collapse of OKA saying his demand for Mudavadi to be the outfit's presidential candidate caused divisions in the team.
Washiali said they had prior arrangements on how they will approach the August elections and it is therefore important for Malala to go slow not to sow seeds of division in Kenya Kwanza.
"When he was in OKA, I heard him saying that it was mandatory for their presidential candidate to be Musalia. They forced that narrative and that led to the collapse of OKA," the MP said.
"Let him not bring that narrative to Kenya Kwanza and destroy that which we have built before they joined."
Remarks by Washiali comes days after Malala told off Mathira MP Rigathi Gachagua for saying the running mate slot is a preserve of the Mt Kenya region.
Malala said Kenya Kwanza is not a coalition of regions but parties and therefore if one party gets the presidency, the other should be given the running mate slot.