The signing of a coalition agreement by One Kenya Alliance leaders has ignited a debate on which way the team will go in the August election.
Led by former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka, Oka partners Gideon Moi (Kanu), Martha Karua (Narc Kenya) and Cyrus Jirongo of UDP were categorical nothing stops them from going all the way to the ballot.
Ugenya MP David Ochieng of Movement of Democracy and Growth and former PS Irungu Nyakera of Farmers Party joined the coalition on Friday.
But the elephant in the room is whether they can marshal forces to go it alone, join Kenya Kwanza or team up with ODM leader Raila Odinga's Azimio team - where President Uhuru Kenyatta is the proposed patron.
By signing the deal to make Oka the first coalition, observers argue that the chances of teaming up with other coalitions are thin.
The Political Parties (Amendment) Act, 2022, bars coalitions from joining hands.
Fashioning Oka as a coalition, it is argued, may complicate the team’s engagement with the Azimio umbrella.
“A member of a coalition shall not be a member of another coalition,” Clause 7 (9) of the recently enacted parties’ law states.
A source in Oka intimated that the coalition would only be considered alive after the agreement is deposited with the registrar.
"What we signed is just a stop gap. It defines how we will relate and also for the instances where we fail to reach a deal with our prospective partners," the source said on Friday.
The developments have equally escalated the uncertainty of Kalonzo and ODM leader Raila Odinga joining forces for the August 9 election.
The Wiper leader, at the signing ceremony, did not give indications he would join Raila and President Uhuru Kenyatta for the unveiling of the Azimio flag bearer.
The handshake partners want Kalonzo on their side owing to Ukambani numbers. His appearance at KICC and later at Jacaranda Grounds stands to give the two the head start they need to lock Ruto out of Ukambani.
This is because barely hours to the unveiling, Kalonzo maintained their door was still open for structured and transparent talks with other parties.
During the signing, which has been awaited for months, Kalonzo also did not rule out marshalling a third force for the August presidential election.
“If we find that people are intolerant and don’t want to listen to others, we are set and we have instruments. But we are also ready to have dialogue,” he said.
Other Oka leaders equally alluded to the same saying they were good to go to the wire should the talks with Raila – and by extension President Kenyatta - fail to bear fruit.
“The story may not end here. We have talked about creating a like-minded political formation to form an arsenal for the election,” Kalonzo said.
During a recent meeting with journalists, political parties registrar Anne Nderitu said coalition parties are strictly formed by individual parties as corporate members.
Kalonzo, however, disclosed that talks were still under way for the formation of a juggernaut for the face-off with DP William Ruto who is a frontrunner in the Uhuru succession race.
“We talked about the possibility of a grand coalition. But we have our coalition here and we are set. If others don’t want to engage, we are ready to go to the wire. After this, nothing stops us,” he said.
Raila is banking on Kalonzo’s support to bolster his campaign machinery for the face-off with Ruto who is equally putting up a force to counter his competition.
But the former VP said there were “important matters that must be dealt with” prior to Oka entering into partnerships with other parties.
He was not clear on whether he would attend the Raila unveiling at KICC where about 300 delegates from 15 political parties are expected to endorse his bid.
Kalonzo's Ukambani vote bloc – of about 1.3 million - is argued to be essential to Raila, with observers underscoring the value of the Wiper leader in delivering the same.
Raila recently told off those giving him preconditions for poll talks saying Azimio is a coalition of the willing.
"We will deal with those who come to us. We will not force anybody to come to Azimio. Azimio is for the willing," the ODM leader said.
The Oka team wants some conditions fulfilled for the engagements, as reiterated by Karua and Jirongo at the signing in Nairobi on Friday.
Karua said the coalition will demand openness and will not tolerate opaqueness in the engagements with the prospective partners.
“We will not play second fiddle. We will go in as equals. If we decide, as we might, to field a presidential candidate, we will settle on one of us,” the former Gichugu MP said.
She said they wouldn’t want to enter into a conversation where the outcome appears predetermined.
“We don't want to be told this is predetermined. We want total openness, mutual respect, and equality so that if we cede ground, we do so because it would be the ideal thing to do and not with a gun to our head,” Karua said.
She argued that coalition politics in the country gets murky owing to the lack of transparency among the players.
“A coalition demands openness, mutual respect, sharing of ideas. And when any party feels uncomfortable, they should be able to walk away,” she added.
Jirongo also alluded to the possibility of Oka fielding a presidential candidate should they fail to strike a deal with Azimio.
“We are looking at a document that will most likely produce the next president. We are open to talks with other coalitions similar to ours. But that doesn’t put a lid on us going it alone.”
“We are still open and discussing. There are things that are going on and we believe if they go on well, we’ll be a bigger team. If not, we are sure that with this team, we can produce a leader that can take this country to the next level,” the UDP leader said.
Kalonzo restated that Oka remains crucial as it stands to complete the construction of the ‘three-legged stool'.
"You can be sure that the strongest leg of the three-legged stool will be Oka. We consult as parties and agree on how to move," Kalonzo said.
“By attending the Jubilee conference, we were clear about our position, and by not attending the ODM NDC, we also made those reasons clear,” he added.
The Oka chief further revealed they have more activities as the “partners have resolved to move in a particular direction.”
He indicated that they had “serious introspection and debate about the prevailing political situation” adding that the focus on him was proof that no one is indispensable.
He, however, said his team was ready to make sacrifices – as they have before - but on condition that the parties they are engaging would come to the table with clean hearts.
“We have no doubt in our minds that this country is more important than any of us. We have made sacrifices before and we are ready to make more sacrifices.”
Kalonzo explained his insistence on structured dialogue saying they would not be doing justice to themselves as Oka if they “go out there and throw everything to the dogs”.
Kanu’s Gideon said, “Each of the principals has something to add to the building blocks to the solutions for the people of Kenya.”
“We have made ourselves a covenant to the people of Kenya because promises are there to be broken. Our covenant is that we’ll put our people first,” he said, asking his colleagues to consider winning the prize on August 9.
Ochieng, while welcoming the initiative, said, “This is the promise of democracy and the promise of the Constitution. I am in the right place where my heart belongs. The only existing coalition is Oka. Let's be happy with what we have achieved.”
Nyakera said, “We aren't here by mistake or accident. We believe in the vision of one Kenya and we have the right to be in a place where we share values.”
“I feel we are headed in the right direction. We will do our best to popularise the coalition and manifesto,” the Murang’a governor aspirant said.
