[SIZE=7]Ruto Suspends Tomorrow’s Busia Rally to Avoid Clash With Raila[/SIZE]
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[li]By PAUL KURGAT on 25 May 2022 - 7:59 pm[/li]
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DP William Ruto addresses a crowd during a Kenya Kwanza rally at the Msabaha stadium in Kilifi county on Wednesday, May 25, 2022.
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Deputy President William Ruto on Wednesday, May 25, suspended a Kenya Kwanza rally in Busia County to avert clashing with Azimio One Kenya flagbearer Raila Odinga.
UDA National Vice-Treasurer Mary Emase confirmed to a Kenyans.co.ke reporter that the rally scheduled to be held at Simba Chai on Thursday, May 26, was put off since Raila was scheduled to hold a rally in neighbouring Amukura.
Emase noted that the rally has been rescheduled for Friday, tentatively but may be suspended indefinitely - further lamenting that Azimio had engaged in foul play.
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“We cannot hold that rally because they want to interfere with our programmes, that amounts to disturbance. They knew very well that our rally was in Simba Chai and they went ahead to organise theirs in Amukura which is very close,” she stated.
The UDA official explained that the DP was to hold a rally in Ang’urai in Teso North on Friday where he was scheduled to meet Kenya Kwanza leaders and supporters and may try to fix the Simba Chai visit on the same day.
Nonetheless, she admitted the likelihood of cancelling the entire tour of the region and holding one which would bring together all leaders in Kenya Kwanza for a grand rally.
Ruto, who is currently in the Coast region on a four-day tour where he was holding economic forums and rallies, dispatched co-principals Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetangula to hold campaigns in Western where he was set to feature in the final meeting.
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On the other hand, the former Premier began his five-day tour of the Western region on Wednesday, May 25, by holding a rally in Vihiga County. He will be expected to tour Kakamega, Bungoma, and Busia counties.
Ruto is hell belt to break the political monopoly that President Uhuru Kenyatta’s handshake partner has enjoyed in Western Kenya with the help of Musalia and Wetangula, who have been tasked with delivering a minimum of 70 per cent of the vote.
Speaking during a rally on Tuesday, May 24, UDA gubernatorial candidate Boni Khalwale told Kakamega residents to vote for Ruto, who has promised to bring development to the region, accusing Raila of sidelining them.
The country’s Number Two is seeking to avoid a repeat of unfortunate events that happened in Kisumu, where his motorcade was pelted with stones after he ignored warnings by the police of possible mayhem.
The decision to postpone Ruto’s rally came amid calls by religious and government leaders for political tolerance and peaceful campaigns ahead of the August 9 General Election.
MEANWHILE… Aisha Jumwa on Wednesday, May 25, lost her cool during a rally presided over by Deputy President William Ruto at the Msabaha Grounds in Kilifi County.
Jumwa was making an address at the joint rally organised by her party, UDA, and Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) which is led by Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi.
However, the turf wars with her rival George Kithi, played out in public as a section of the crowd shouted down Jumwa to finish her speech and give a chance to the PAA candidate.
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Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa and PAA gubernatorial aspirant George Kithi during a Kenya Kwanza Rally at the Msabaha Stadium in Kilifi County on Wednesday, May 25, 2022.
In a video seen by [I]Kenyans.co.ke[/I], a visibly agitated Jumwa accused some of the PAA supporters of attending the rally to disrupt her speech and embarrass her in front of Ruto.
“I request the UDA supporters to keep quiet. You have come for the rally while the others are clearly here to do their job (stop her from speaking)”, Jumwa stated.
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She later allowed Kithi to make his remarks and as soon as he started speaking, the shouting went down - prompting the Malindi MP to make quick snide remarks.
“Honourable George Kithi, every dog listens to its owner so speak to your people and cool them down,” Jumwa stated as she made some gestures of disapproval at the security team managing the rally.
Owing to the fracas witnessed, the Kenya Kwanza presidential flagbearer opted to address the crowd from his car instead of the dias prepared for him.
The two candidates put aside their differences and vowed to work together for the sake of winning the presidential vote in favour of Ruto, even as Jumwa urged the DP to get a national government job for his PAA rival.
“Your excellency, I am kindly asking you to set aside an appointive seat for Kithi at the national government. Let him serve the country at that level, and allow me to battle it out with our opponents in the race to succeed Governor Kingi,” she stated.
The DP is at the Coast on a four-day tour where he will be hosting economic forums across the region. Earlier on Wednesday, he chaired a forum in Mombasa County before moving to Kilifi for a Kenya Kwanza rally.
Kithi, a Nairobi-based lawyer, recently made headlines after he was removed from the DP’s podium while the Deputy President received Kingi and his party into PAA.
The Kilifi gubernatorial candidate later claimed that his removal was orchestrated by Jumwa and was meant to humiliate him and give the Malindi an upper hand in the race to replace Kingi as Kilifi Governor.