Kioni: Gachagua can’t kick Jubilee, Uhuru out of Mt Kenya
Says being region's kingpin not a question of holding top position in government
by The Star
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Jubilee secretary general Jeremiah Kioni during an interview with the Star in Nairobi on January 30, 2023.
Jubilee secretary general Jeremiah Kioni has declared he will not join the “bandwagon” of leaders playing dalliance with Kenya Kwanza amid heightened lobbying by Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.
The former Ndaragwa MP also downplayed the Deputy President’s influence, saying he has a long way to go to be Mt Kenya kingpin.
In a no-holds-barred exclusive interview with the Star, the former lawmaker also dismissed assertions that President Uhuru Kenyatta has to exit the political scene.
He dismissed those out to throw him out of the party, saying they will be in for “a shocker of their political experience”.
The former MP trashed the moves, saying they are a ploy by not only Gachagua but part of President William Ruto’s game to kill political parties.
“If you think you get control of Central by killing political parties, read the history of Moi. Don’t think you can put Mt Kenya under monolithic thinking by killing political parties,” Kioni said.
The Jubilee secretary general accused the Kenya Kwanza team, which is largely composed of ex-Jubilee MPs, of plotting to kill the party in the wake of the ouster threats.
“The political parties’ space is being taken away by those in power. Taxpayers fund political parties for them to effectively check the government of the day. This government has denied us any funding,” he said.
“He [Ruto] wants to kill Jubilee and Wiper. The spirit of the two parties is beyond what he would want to imagine. Those who are being used by them thinking they can rock Jubilee should know the party is stronger than they imagine,” the MP stated.
He announced that the party would be out on a meet-the-members’ tour, with meetings lined up in Narok, Kajiado, Lamu and Mombasa.
On the kingpin question, coming in the face of nominated MP Sabina Chege endorsing Gachagua as the Mt Kenya kingpin, Kioni said being a state official is no automatic ticket to being the community’s figurehead.
Kioni referred those bidding for the DP as the region's ultimate leader to read the history of JJ Kamotho.
“He was the noisiest politician this country has ever produced. He was occupying the highest office from that region at one point but he never became the kingpin,” he said.
“Mt Kenya people don’t rally around a person because of the office you occupy. Being a top state official doesn’t translate into kingship. Kingship has more to do with moral integrity. It comes from the people. There is never a ceremony to declare one as such. The person attracts people.”
He said those angling for the post “will always remain in the shadow of the person the region recognises” – in this case, Uhuru.
On life after the election, the ex-MP said he has much more to do for Kenyans, freely, as compared to his time in the August House.
“In the last couple of days, I have appreciated the fact that I am not MP for Ndaragwa, not because I did not desire to serve them longer, but what I have been doing for the last 140 days is much more than what I would have done if I was MP,” he said.
“In terms of political satisfaction, this is the best that has happened to me. I am happy to join Raila Odinga much freer than when you are an MP. This is what will give the liberation that is still hidden from us,” he quipped.
The ex-MP said the anti-Ruto rallies led by Azimio leader Raila Odinga are just about to get hotter.
“If we don’t continue with this fight, come together and stand against this regime, Ruto and his other guy will get the hell out of people in this town,” the Jubilee boss added.
“We will not believe it; we will go down so quickly in an unbelievable manner. The only fortunate thing is that we have social media unlike those days.”
The SG, however, indicated that regardless, “getting Ruto out of our way will be a shorter and quicker exercise than it was with Daniel Moi”.
Jubilee secretary general and former Ndaragwa MP Jeremiah Kioni after an interview with the Star in Nairobi on January 30, 2023.
On Ruto’s move to reverse key policy decisions by the Uhuru administration, Kioni said the changes are painful.
“We are taking this very painfully. They are the things giving us sleepless nights,” he said.
On the IEBC tribunal, Kioni said “the end-game was to exit the four commissioners so that William Ruto ends up with an empty bucket and can now form his own electoral and boundaries commission.”
“He has used provisions that were meant for an ordinary Kenyan to oversight those institutions. The formation of a tribunal was never, in the minds of those who crafted the Constitution, a tool available for the Executive.”
On the subsidies, the Jubilee leader said Ruto’s team is yet to understand why governments exist.
“Governments exist to give that support are not in the business of making money. Unfortunately, we have UDA who have come to power to make money.”
On the conversation about Uhuru having to retire or lose pension perks, and whether the party discussed the same, the former MP said the referenced law is unconstitutional.
“In its wording, that provision of the statute [Section 6 of the Presidential Retirement Benefit Act, 2003] is unconstitutional. It seeks to limit your freedom of the things that you can do when alive,” he said.
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