Jubilee Party Secretary-General Jeremiah Kioni/FILE
Speaking amid growing concerns over the party's future,
Kioni claimed that a section of Jubilee diehards had come under pressure
because of their steadfast support for the former ruling party.
Without dropping names, Kioni said he was being targeted
despite working tirelessly for the party led by retired President Uhuru
Kenyatta.
The former lawmaker was among the party officials who fought
in the courts to save it from takeover by a section of disgruntled
members immediately after the 2022 elections.
Jubilee, once the country's dominant political force, has
been struggling to redefine its place in the evolving political landscape
following the exit of former President Uhuru Kenyatta from active frontline
politics.
“What crime did I commit by fighting for the party,
defending its ideals, and openly endorsing Fred Matiang’i as our preferred
presidential candidate? Why are those associated with this cause being singled
out and victimised?” Kioni posted on Tuesday.
“Political parties are not built overnight; it has taken
years of sweat, blood, commitment, and hard work to build these
structures. Do those seeking to dismantle
them today truly understand what it took to put them in place?”
“As you focus on sideshows and hearsay, please remember we
have a party to build and protect.’
The former Ndaragwa MP also turned his guns on some members
of the party's National Executive Committee (NEC), accusing them of maintaining
links with various presidential hopefuls and getting away with it.
Kioni, however, said loyal grassroots leaders have increasingly
been targeted.
“How is it that some NEC can openly endorse other
presidential candidates, while others work hand in hand with our political
competitors without consequences, yet the people facing intimidation and
threats are junior staff, grassroots leaders, aspiring candidates, and the party’s
most ardent grassroots supporters and followers who have remained steadfastly loyal to the party? ” Kioni posed.
“Make it make sense.”
But Jubilee Secretary General Moitalel Ole Kenta dismissed
claims of friction in the former ruling party, saying Kioni has not made any
complaints to any organ of the party.
“Why can’t he come out and explain who is threatening him?
It doesn’t make sense; who are those senior persons he is saying? ” posed
Kenta.
“As far as I know, in Jubilee we have no problem.”
Kenta also doubted the credibility of the Facebook account, insisting
the whole claim doesn’t make sense.
Former Nyeri Town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu, weighing on the simmering
war in the party, claimed some political greenhorns have hijacked the outfit and were elbowing those who mean well for the party.
“This man fought for our party even when some of us were
still recovering from the deliberate mess that was 2022. He stayed the course
when we had stepped back. He protected the party even when Uhuru did not know
what to do,” Wambugu stated.
“It is therefore terribly sad to see ‘new’ party officials who have never won an election, who didn’t support us in 2022, or who were not even members at the time of appointment to their offices, trying to throw him under the bus today.
The developments come at a time when political parties are intensifying grassroots mobilisation and positioning themselves ahead of coalition negotiations expected to shape the 2027 presidential contest.
INSTANT ANALYSIS
The unfolding wrangles could test Jubilee's cohesion at a
time when opposition parties are seeking to present a united front against
President William Ruto in the next election.
