Bahati Member of Parliament and Deputy President William Ruto's strongman, Onesmus Kimani Ngunjiri, has denounced existence of talks between the Gatundu South lawmaker, Moses Kuria, and the Kenya Kwanza political faction.
Speaking during an appearance on a TV interview on Tuesday, March 8, the long-time defender of DP Ruto stated that as members of the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), they were not aware of any talks between Kuria and Kenya Kwanza.
He also hit out at Kuria for claiming that his Chama Cha Kazi party was lobbying 21 other like-minded political parties to join the Kenya Kwanza alliance.
Ngunjiri further claimed that the pronouncements by the outspoken Legislator were aimed at politically influencing the Deputy President's choice of a running mate.
"I do not know of any talks. I am inside UDA and I am not aware of any discussions. He says that he has 21 other parties, but I don't know any of those parties. He needs to tell us which parties are these.
"Kuria has stated before that he will look for someone who will give him the running mate position, and now he has carried 21 parties. Both sides will determine what value his parties bring," stated Ngunjiri.
He further opined that Kuria would only be valuable to Kenya Kwanza or former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's Azimio la Umoja if he had a huge political following.
He explained that coalitions between parties ahead of the August 9 polls will be determined by each party's political following.
"When we know the parties, we would like to know whether they are briefcase parties. Any side, be it Amizio or UDA, can only form a coalition with someone who has numbers," he added.
Through his social media account on March 4, Kuria announced that he was in talks with Kenya Kwanza leaders with the possibility of joining the coalition ahead of the August 9 polls.
He also explained that he opted to join the DP's camp over his change of tune regarding partnering with political parties. The DP and his allies had previously asked Kuria and other political parties to fold their outfits and join UDA.
"This is to inform Kenyans that Chama Cha Kazi Party and 21 other political parties are in early talks with the Kenya Kwanza Alliance that will lead to a very broad-based grand coalition that will deliver the nation to peace and prosperity.
"Kenya Kwanza has changed and they have welcomed everybody. They have accepted that their allies will join the alliance through different parties," the lawmaker explained at the time.
