The United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party has dismissed claims that Deputy President William Ruto will be given a direct nomination to be its presidential candidate.
The party’s Secretary-General Veronica Maina on Monday, June 21, stated that the party has not reserved the presidential ticket for Ruto.
This announcement comes after the deputy president hinted while in a rally at West Pokot last Saturday that he was planning on using the party to contest for the 2022 presidency.
The UDA SG went ahead and stated that should other aspirants emerge, the DP would have to go through nominations.
She further noted that it was okay for the DP to associate himself with UDA or any other party of his choice because the Jubilee Party associates itself with the ODM party.
“What is the difference when the DP associates himself with UDA?” she posed.
The announcement by the deputy president is likely to stir up debate on political party membership regulations as the law forbids members belonging to more than one political party,
"UDA is not the only party that subscribes to the 'Hustler Nation' ideology there is PDP, PEP among others," political analyst Gloria Orwoba stated in a recent media interview.
This was after the deputy president termed UDA as a hustler’s party.
The emergence of UDA as deputy president William Ruto’s alternative political card stems from the more than three years of strained relationship with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The Intra-Jubilee factional wars were severe until its members segregated themselves.
Those in Ruto's camp formed the Tanga Tanga Squad while the President's loyalists are largely identified under the Kieleweke formation.
“Jubilee has been destroyed and turned into a tribal alliance," Ruto argued while criticising the Jubilee-ODM alliance.
