UHURU accuses LDP of sidelining Kanu in ODM-Kenya

Kenneth Owino

NAIROBI, Kenya- Kanu Chairman Uhuru Kenyatta, who is also a presidential candidate in ODM-Kenya, a coalition of LDP and Kanu, has accused LDP of sidelining Kanu in the coalition.
Uhuru who called Kanu delegates’ meeting to be held in Nairobi has said it is they the delegates who will decide the future of Kanu in the opposition coalition.

Uhuru has further claimed that Kanu was given a raw deal in the composition of the coalition’s top organs. Some of the top organs in the coalition Uhuru claim his party was given raw deals in their composition are, the National Executive Council, the Council of Elders and the National Elections Board.
“We took our members to the Safari Park Hotel where the National Executive Council was formed. The LDP also brought their own, but at the end of the day LDP scooped most of the seats”, said Uhuru.

Uhuru further went on to accuse the coalition partner of trying to wreck Kanu from within ODM-Kenya.
“The outcome of various by-elections across the various regions in the country have been very disappointing”, the Kanu Chairman complained.
He further accused the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) leadership of fielding weak candidates where Kanu had wide following under the pretext of doing so under the banner of ODM-Kenya. He said this has made the party lose its political base.

Uhuru termed the scenario in ODM-Kenya where LDP has five presidential candidates under ODM-Kenya while Kanu has only two as unfair.
“This is a proof that they, the LDP wants to lord over us yet we are strong politically both at the grassroots and at the parliamentary level”, Uhuru lamented.

He said that the distribution and the composition of top party organs should be done in a manner that is reflective of the strengths of the parties that form the coalition.
The Kanu Chairman further chastises the LDP leadership of stifling democracy within its ranks by failing to hold party elections.
“We must strive to allow democracy to thrive within our parties. This is the very reason I feel LDP should hold elections and end wrangling within its ranks”, he said.

Uhuru dismissed allegations that he was trying to pull Kanu out of the coalition saying Kanu was in ODM-Kenya to stay. He further reaffirmed that he is still in the race to clinch the ODM-Kenya presidential ticket.
Uhuru has meanwhile convened a Kanu NEC meeting to chart the way forward in the way the party will conduct itself within the ODM-Kenya coalition. •