Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua on Sunday, January 5, spoke to Kenyans.co.ke on the Maendelo Chap Chap (MCC) party's plans to firmly establish itself before the next polls.
The party this weekend released a calendar of events that will see party officials elected, volunteers recruited, aspirants identified and structures strengthened within the first half of 2020.
Polling station volunteers and a committee will first be put in place by February 15, with ward executive committee, sub-branch, and branch elections to follow. A National Delegates Conference will be held on May 29, setting the stage for election of officials to the party's most powerful organ, the National Executive Committee.
Reiterating that MCC was a national outfit, Mutua insisted that the party would have branches and activities in counties all across the country.
In his Ukambani backyard, however, Mutua will be looking to reap from growing discontent within the Wiper party.
"We want to establish ourself as a party based on ideology. We see a lot of parties now are falling apart. We see what is happening in Jubilee, we see what is happening to Wiper, we see a lot of briefcase parties formed just to win an election. We want to tell people this is a party that is gonna be there forever," Mutua asserted.
Leaders from the region including former Senator Johnstone Muthama have in recent weeks made clear their desire for the Kamba community to chart a political path away from erstwhile kingpin Kalonzo Musyoka.
Mutua told Kenyans.co.ke that he not only expected officials and members of Wiper to take part in the MCC polls but also members of Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and the ruling Jubilee Party to decamp.
"We do expect a lot of people to migrate to our party who are already active, but we're also going to attract very many new people who have parties but they'd rather get a party they can trust. We will also get new people who haven't joined a party yet and this will be their first political party," he stated.
Mutua stated that his party's ideology was based on rapid development and economic growth that translates to money in Kenyans' pockets.
Asked whether he was guilty of politicking years to the election, Mutua maintained that it was actually a requirement for political parties to have proper structures in place, that they had began early preparations to take over the reins of national leadership in 2022.
