Tanga Tanga Camp Proposes Conditional Truce With President Uhuru

Deputy President William Ruto’s Tanga Tanga camp have issued demands before reconciling with President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee but the demands have been dismissed by the president’s allies, dimming any hopes of the once formidable political friends ever reconciling before 2022.

Ruto’s UDA soldiers believe Jubilee party has been hijacked by a few individuals who have gone ahead to destroy it.

The Tanga Tanga camps claims that a string of losses in recent by-elections is enough evidence Jubilee party has been hijacked by individuals who have no idea of running a successful political party.

Noting UDA, a party associated with DP Ruto has been registering impressive results, even winning some seats in the same by-elections where the jubilee party would have easily captured.

In Juja constituency for instance, Jubilee party registered a huge loss after a candidate who was given a ticket by Moses Kuria’s party trounced Jubilee’s candidate by a huge margin.

Nakuru Senator Susa Kihika, who is an ally of DP Ruto believes Uhuru has lost Central Kenya voters, something he can only recover through a reconciliation with Ruto.

“It is only William Ruto who can help him (Uhuru) regain the mountain grip and we are ready if he is ready,” she said.

Mathira MP Rigathi Gacagua also believes Jubilee’s string of losses in Bonchari, Juja and Rurii ward in Nyandarua is a protest vote by the electorate against the once srong political party.

“That is why you will never hear us attack the president or say he has not meant well for us. He is however being punished in by-elections by utterances made by people like Jubilee Vice Chair David Murathe,” Rigathi told Saturday Nation.

Gacagua says Ruto needs to be included in the handshake deal which introduced Raila into government and pushed Ruto away from Uhuru.

“The departure point was the incorporation of Raila Odinga into government through the handshake and the bulldosing of the Building Bridges Initiative. That also must be on the table,” he said.

The calls for a reconciliation have however been dismissed by a section of Uhuru’s footsoldiers like Ngunjiri Wambugu and Kiambu governor James Nyoro.

“The Ruto team in Mt Kenya has always wanted to negotiate with the president. In fact, they wanted to prove their muscle (through winning a by-election) before coming to the table. I do not think that would work,” said Nyeri town MP Ngunjiri Wambugu in an interview with Nation.

James Nyoro, who spearheaded campaigns in Kiambu where the Jubilee party was badly beaten, dismissed the reconciliation talks.

“A year and a half to the 2022 elections is an eternity in politics. The president was not in the contest (in the Juja parliamentary and Rurii ward by-election) and I wonder where they are drawing their fantasies for reconciliation demands,” The Governor is quoted saying

In a separate statement, Jubilee Party Vice Chairman David Murathe had already indicated that the differences between Uhuru and Ruto cannot be reconciled.

He claimed the deputy president had openly challenged Uhuru during a State House parliamentary meeting by asking some Senators not to attend.

This he termed as an act of rebellion against the Jubilee Party leader.

It is worth noting Murathe and Jubilee Party Secretary-General Raphael Tuju have been at the forefront in engineering plans to kick William Ruto from the position of Jubilee Party Deputy leader.

In October of 2020, another Uhuru Kenyatta’s ally Maina Kamanda dismissed any talks of a reconciliation between Uhuru and Ruto, terming Ruto as a vindictive politician whose heart harbours a lot of anger and thus not suitable to be president.

“Our work to make sure this man [Ruto] does not ascend to power in 2022 is on, reconciliation is a figment of some people’s imaginations,” he said.

It thus remains to be seen if the latest push by Ruto’s allies for a conditional reconciliation will work given the hardline stance exhibited by politicians in Uhuru’s camp. Only time will tell