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A fierce political rift has opened between Labour CS Alfred Mutua and his long-time ally, Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse.
A simmering row between Labour and Social Protection Cabinet Secretary Alfred Mutua and Kibwezi West MP Mwengi Mutuse has burst out in the open after the MP led a faction of Maendeleo Chap Chap Party (MCCP) leaders in ditching the party, which is associated with Dr Mutua.
Mr Mutuse has instead embarked on popularising the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) to the chagrin of Dr Mutua, as details of a sustained push by President William Ruto on MCCP to dissolve emerged.
"Some people have ashamed the Kamba community," Dr Mutua told a rally at AIC Mukuni in Machakos County on March 3.
The remarks were understood to be aimed at a section of MCCP leaders from Machakos and Makueni counties led by Mr Mutuse, who met President Ruto at State House the day before.
Trouble started after a section of MCCP leaders allied to Mr Mutuse bypassed Dr Mutua in their engagement with President Ruto over the folding up of the party.
The first-term MP who shot to the national limelight after spearheading the impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua has been Dr Mutua's main lieutenant for years.
The last two weeks have seen Mr Mutuse lead delegations of Machakos and Makueni leaders to meetings with the Head of State at the State House, signalling political realignment as Dr Mutua engaged Machakos residents on the push to dissolve his party.
"We will work closer with President Ruto under UDA. However, the parties are neither dissolving nor merging. MCCP will be parked for now, stood over generally; so to speak," Mr Mutuse told the Nation in an interview last week.
The move comes barely three weeks after President Ruto's aide, Farouk Kibet, prevailed upon Mr Mutuse to ditch MCCP and join UDA. Mr Kibet told a women empowerment drive at Kisayani Township in Makueni County that Mr Mutuse stood a good chance of becoming UDA national organising secretary, a position which is currently held by Mwala MP Vincent Musyoka.
Mr Mutuse has since changed the theme colour of his events from purple to yellow, the signature colour of UDA, signalling a complete departure. Dr Mutua has, however, maintained MCCP's purple colour in the decoration of his events.
Cabinet Secretary for Labour and Social Protection Dr Alfred Mutua speaks during a press briefing at the NSSF Building, Upper Hill in Nairobi on April 23, 2025.
Although he has not unequivocally ruled out ditching MCCP and joining UDA, Dr Mutua has urged patience.
Amid the growing pressure from President Ruto to dissolve MCCP, Dr Mutua rued alleged betrayal, which allegedly befell the late Kibwezi MP Kalembe Ndile when he folded The Independent Party ahead of the 2017 General Election.
"President Ruto has told me I have a good party, but he wants me to set MCCP aside and join UDA together with my supporters so that we can have one big party. I have been thinking about it," Dr Mutua told the recent rally at AIC Mukuni in Machakos County.
"If President Ruto wants me to ditch MCCP, he should pay back by accelerating development in the Ukambani region," he added.
While maintaining the move to dissolve MCCP was neither sanctioned by the party nor driven by the interests of the people, Dr Mutua has accused Mr Mutuse of being too quick to yield to President Ruto's overture, a position shared by a top MCCP official.
"The people who have joined UDA have done so in their individual capacities. They should stop dragging MCCP in their individual decision s. The party has not folded up. However, there has been intense pressure to fold up," he told Nation on condition of anonymity.
The fallout between Dr Mutua and Mr Mutuse has hardly surprised observers. They have been nursing lofty political ambitions. Dr Mutua juggles between his cabinet secretary position and an ambition to become Machakos Senator in the 2027 General Election.
Just like Dr Mutuse, Dr Mutua wants to be the Head of State in 2032. Multiple political analysts believe Mr Mutuse has seen an opportunity to leverage on UDA's network to enhance his national influence ahead of the 2032 General Election.
Mr Mutuse's faction, which includes Machakos Town MP Caleb Mule and most of the elected and nominated MCCP MCAs in Machakos and Makueni counties, has sneered at Dr Mutua's conditions. They have been fighting growing claims of betraying Dr Mutua.
"MCCP belonged to Dr Mutua who works under President Ruto. I belong to Dr Mutua who works for President Ruto. Those wondering why I joined UDA should understand that we have been working closely with President Ruto and not the opposition. As MCCP, we have been standing on the doorway as decision are made right inside the government. We have since joined the government where key decisions are made," Mr Mule said recently.
Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka (right) and Jubilee Party’s Dr Fred Matiang’i during a public rally at Gitugi market in Murang'a County.
The infighting at MCCP has exposed Dr Mutua to ridicule from allies of Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka. Machakos Governor Wavinya Ndeti, for instance, says Mr Mutuse's faction has betrayed Dr Mutua "the way Dr Mutua betrayed Mr Musyoka when he formed MCCP after ditching Wiper," she said last week.
Mr Mutuse has, however, played down the cracks in the party while making a strong case for the move to ditch MCCP.
"There comes a time when leaders must focus on practical ways of uniting the nation by working together within a national political party to accelerate development and enhance the social and economic well-being of our people. This is such a moment," he said on Monday.
The push to dissolve MCCP, Mr Mutuse has revealed, is part of a broader plan by President Ruto to unite the country ahead of the 2027 General Election.
"The President and ourselves aim to de-ethnicise our politics by working together in a big national party akin to the way ANC is to South Africa, CCM has been in Tanzania and KANU was to Kenya at independence," he said.
A series of consultative meetings, which Dr Mutua and Mr Mutuse's factions have been holding for the last two weeks to seek approval on the decision to abandon the party, have divided opinion.
"We can elect you as a senator on a MCCP ticket. It will be hard to market President Ruto in Ukambani when Mr Musyoka is on the ballot. That is the painful truth," Joseph Mutisya, the chairman of an association of three-wheeler operators in Machakos County, told Dr Mutua recently.
To secure a significant buy-in, the two factions have separately lined up additional consultative forums in Kitui, Machakos and Makueni counties. "We are currently carrying out public participation so that our membership and citizens at large can give their say on this intended decision," Mr Mutuse said.
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