As Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka angles himself as the possible heir to opposition chief Raila Odinga in the 2027 presidential election, his prime target appears to be Mt Kenya.
It is the deceptive mountain that Mr Odinga has been attempting to scale, the most spirited one being the 2022 presidential poll when he increased his tally in a contest dominated by United Democratic Alliance (UDA) candidate and eventual winner William Ruto.
Mr Musyoka is passionate about the voter-rich region and has even formed a think-tank comprising politicians, media experts and the business community in a bid to scale the mountain.
The former Vice President has also been holding closed-door meetings with some area leaders, including Kikuyu Council of Elders and former Jubilee Party aspirants, and tours of the region.
One strategy appears centred on uniting Meru, Tharaka Nithi and Embu counties with his Ukambani (Machakos, Kitui and Makueni) bloc.
The Wiper Party boss has held consultations with former Meru governor Kiraitu Murungi and several other leaders as he sought to position Ukambani as one that could be consolidated with Mt Kenya.
As he toured Meru County on February 12 , Mr Musyoka made a passionate plea to the people to unite as Eastern region “for political emancipation”. He was joined by former Meru governor and leader of the Party of National Unity Peter Munya, who said Mr Musyoka was “a footstep away to the presidency”.
Mr Musyoka said Embu, Meru and Tharaka Nithi counties are used as a voting partner by Central Kenya and discarded when it comes to sharing resources and government jobs.
Kitui Senator Enoch Wambua said: “Mt Kenya and Ukambani have always been good friends and are in laws.” He added:
Pundits say Mr Musyoka’s drive will be interesting to watch, given that in the history of multiparty elections, the mountain has always voted away from his camp.
Political analyst Prof Ngugi Njoroge said that Musyoka will have to build his Mt Kenya base from scratch since there are no figures to show that he is one of the region’s preferred options.
Prof Njoroge said when the Wiper leader contested the presidency in 2007, he performed poorly in Mt Kenya. His most promising constituency was Gachoka in Embu County that gave him 20.59 percent of its votes .
Embu Governor Cecily Mbarire, who is President Ruto’s UDA chair said: “I can only wish him luck since he needs it in abundance…Embu and Mt Kenya in general is currently locked for political experiments.”
It is a stance shared by Meru Governor Kawira Mwangaza who said Kalonzo should first consult President Ruto and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua on what alternative position he can be given between 2027 and 2032 since his 2027 presidential bid is “extremely hard”.
Former Gatanga MP Nduati Ngugi is also not optimistic. “Kalonzo is a complementary candidate in this region. He has no ability to be the prime choice of area people,” he told Sunday Nation .
He said, “Musyoka is best remembered in gratitude by area people for his 2008 help to the then President Mwai Kibaki who was facing a serious civil unrest after Mr Odinga disputed the presidential results (in 2007)”.
Mr Musyoka, who came third in a disputed election that led to Kenya’s worst political violence, teamed up with President Kibaki even before the negotiated truce that created the Grand Coalition government where Mr Odinga, the ODM candidate—who was declared second—became the Prime Minister.
Mr Musyoka was recently pictured being crowned as a Kikuyu elder, a template political move often used to gain acceptance. But Kikuyu Council of Elders Chairman Wachira Kiago said: “We have not as a council met Mr Musyoka to promise him the region’s votes. Those who met him have since explained that it was a brainstorming session on possible partnerships that can mutually benefit our people for now and into the future.”
“Democracy is giving all an ear to sell their ideas and the electorate be left to have their say in a free vote saying Mt Kenya is a region of equal political opportunity,” said Mr Kiago, adding that if candidates from the region expect to be listened to by other communities as they hunt for votes, it is important to allow those from elsewhere to engage with Mt Kenya voters.
However, Kiama kia Ma patron Mr Kung’u Muigai, who also is the Kenya Cultural Centre Council board chairman, told Nation that the Mt Kenya community has not endorsed anyone for the 2027 contest, and that all those promising Musyoka their votes are doing so not on behalf of the people but in their personal capacities.
He said there are important lessons from Mr Odinga’s forays into Mt Kenya in 2022 that were not as successful as planned despite the support of then President Uhuru Kenyatta and having Ms Martha Karua as running mate.
“If Kalonzo is willing to be lied to and have his resources wasted in deceptive political pacts, he should do so in the full knowledge that Mt Kenya voters have their traditional way of casting votes and so far there is no indicator that they are willing to support him”.
Murang’a Senator Joe Nyutu urged Mr Musyoka to work hard in seeking the region’s vote and leave the rest to God. “I am looking at the picture where Mr Odinga with support from Mr Kenyatta and Mt Kenya Foundation got nowhere… I think Kalonzo’s case is that of bad ambitions, but politics also being the art of the possible, he should give it a try,” he said.
