East African Legislative Assembly Member of Parliament Kanini Kega, on Tuesday, May 30, announced that he will host another Jubilee Party's National Delegates Conference (NDC) in June and invite former President Uhuru Kenyatta to attend.
Speaking to Inooro FM, the former Kieni MP seemingly recognised Uhuru's influence in the party, despite their fallout. Even though he appointed Sabina Chege to replace Uhuru as party leader, a matter contested before the Political Parties Dispute Tribunal, Kega insisted that Uhuru was still part of Jubilee.
He, however, noted that the Uhuru-led NDC was shambolic as it did not have ‘genuine delegates’. Thus he would invite Uhuru to participate in their NDC.
“We will have our own register with genuine delegates before the end of June,” the legislator, who has been pushing for Uhuru's retirement, added.
“We will explain to him the day we have our NDC, which we will do in a public space, not in a private race course," he added.
Kega further denied that he was working against the former Head of State, the party's chairman. The EALA MP, by asking Uhuru to participate in the NDC, also appeared to recognise that Uhuru was active in politics, a stance that he vehemently opposed before and even asked the former President to support the current government.
On May 22, Uhuru led a Jubilee NDC at the Ngong’ Racecourse, where he read the riot act to Jubilee members who he accused of supporting President William Ruto and his administration. Kega, at the time, claimed that the NDC was nothing more than a political rally.
Kega accused Uhuru of inviting non-delegates to the NDC, arguing that it was illegally constituted.
“Without a National Executive Committee (NEC), how can you set the agenda for an NDC? It is a big mistake for people to mislead the fourth president,” Kega stated emphatically.
While insisting that Uhuru is still his close friend, Kega noted that the former Head of State stopped leading Jubilee on March 14, six months after Ruto was sworn in as President on September 13, 2022.
He, therefore, lamented that he was being unfairly accused of betraying Uhuru, yet he had stood with him in the run-up to the August 2022 General Elections.
“I have been abused because of standing with Uhuru. That’s why it is funny to hear people stating that I have betrayed him. If I was to betray Uhuru, I would have betrayed him last year,” decried Kega.
Jubilee Split
The Jubilee Party has been facing a serious dispute over who should control it as Secretary General between one faction led by Kanini Kega and the other headed by the embattled Jeremiah Kioni.
On February 8, 30 Members of Parliament from the Jubilee Party met President William Ruto and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua at State House, where they vowed to support Ruto’s administration.
Things came to a head on April 26 when two factions of Jubilee fought to control the party headquarters in Kileleshwa. Uhuru, who had stayed above the fray, went to the office physically to defend embattled Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni.
At the NDC, Uhuru kicked out 10 members from leadership positions in the party for fostering rebellion. They included Kanini Kega, Sabina Chege, and Jubilee Chairman Nelson Dzuya.
"Those who got the few positions Jubilee had to share are now telling us they will give the party direction. No, their job is to stand firm and defend Jubilee's manifesto or step aside and give us a chance to select replacements," stated a furious Uhuru.
