A section of Jubilee supporters who attended President Uhuru Kenyatta's rally in Nyeri openly disagreed with the president's call to only vote for leaders fielded by the Jubilee Party.
The president, who has been on a tour of the Central Kenya region, took his campaigns to Nyeri County where he came face to face with the voters who were ready to make their stand known.
In Karatina and Mathira, residents raised placards reading "no" and waved their hands to show their disagreement when the head of state attempted to drum up support for Jubilee Party candidates.
The president noticed the open resistance to his message and changed his strategy to respect the views of the crowd.
"It seems there is a something else here but we shall work with whoever you give the vote," he stated.
Nyeri residents who were interviewed by a local newspaper before the president's visit disclosed that the head of state was welcome to campaign for his re-election but urged him to stay away from local politics.
"President amekaribishwa but tunaomba aongee tu juu ya campaign yake, si grassroots campaigns(The President is welcome but let him focus on his campaigns, not grassroots affairs)," a resident told the local daily.
Prior to the visit, it was not business as usual as Ephraim Maina who is the leader of Jubilee campaigns in the region categorically stated that independent candidates and politicians from Jubilee-allied parties were not welcome to the president's rallies.
Meanwhile, Tetu Member of Parliament Ndung'u Gethenji has recorded a statement with the police after he allegedly received threats from Nyeri County Commissioner Julius Karuku.
The support for Independent candidates has left politicians from Jubilee and its rival National Super Alliance deeply divided with the differences surfacing during political rallies.
