Governors Hassan Joho (Mombasa) Dhadho Godhana (Tana River) Granton Samboja (Taita Taveta) and Amason Kingi (Kilifi) during a press briefing at Mwakishimba, in Taita Taveta County.
| Lucy Mkanyika | Nation Media GroupPolitics
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Bid to form Coast party hits snag as Kadu-Asili pulls out
The dream of forming a political outfit for Coast region ahead of next year’s General Election has suffered yet another blow after Kadu-Asili pulled out of talks to merge four parties into one.
Other parties in the grand plan are Umoja Summit Political Party of Kenya, Shirikisho Party and Republican Congress Party.
On Saturday, Kadu-Asili leader Gerald Iha Thoya said the party had resolved to pull out of the talks and go solo in the polls after talks hit a dead-end.
“The discussions have not yielded any fruit and time is running out. Kadu-Asili has agreed to shelve the plans and move forward to rebuild itself ahead of the 2022 General Election,” he said in an interview.
The development comes weeks after Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi protested that the push for Coast unity and formation of regional political party was facing resistance from some leaders.
Mr Thoya said his party decided to go it alone in 2022 after their proposal to form a coalition was dismissed.
“We are not ready to dissolve our party. Our idea was that the new party should instead be added among the four political parties in a coalition,” he said.
Early this month, during the burial of politician and Kaya elder Kahindi Jogolo in Mariakani, Mr Kingi said the push for Coast unity was not his personal idea but an initiative of the people.
Yesterday, leaders of the other three political parties, speaking separately, dismissed reports of a major disagreement. Discussions, they said, are still going on and will bear fruit.
Mr Ibrahim Hamisi, Republican Congress Party secretary-general, said it hasn’t yet been decided whether to form a coalition or merge the four parties.
“This is not something that can be achieved in a day and I urge patience as talks continue,” Mr Hamisi said. His sentiments were backed by Umoja Summit Party founder and secretary-general Naomi Sidi.
“There is a stereotype that Coast people cannot do anything on their own. This is the stereotype we want to abolish,” Ms Sidi said. Shirikisho Party secretary-general Adam Mbeto said the parties had agreed on the need to unite the region.
“If we approach elections as individual parties, we shall end up being dominated by other parties,” he said. In July last year, Kadu-Asili reorganised its top leadership and announced plans for an aggressive campaign to market itself.
The party was later embroiled in a dispute after Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa and her Kilifi North counterpart Owen Baya, who both belong to the Tangatanga political outfit allied to Deputy President William Ruto, invaded the party without the knowledge of it leadership to an extent of amending its constitution.
This prompted Mr Thoya to seek the intervention of Political Parties Registrar Ann Nderitu over “illegal infringement” by people keen to “throw the party into political and leadership dispute.”
The Tangatanga MPS, who have since ditched their plans after setting their eyes on United Democratic Alliance, had then embarked on an aggressive marketing and recruitment campaign.
