NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec 3 – Independence party, the Kenya African National Union (KANU), has condemned Saturday’s ugly incident in Nandi County where rowdy youth loyal to Deputy President William Ruto blocked Baringo Senator Gideon Moi from being installed as a Kalenjin elder.
Gideon’s convoy was blocked while headed to Kapsisiywa area where he had been invited by Talai Elders.
Some of the youth who spoke to journalists later said they will not allow any other leader to be installed because they only recognize Ruto as their community’s elder.
“The otherwise peaceful residents of Sang’alo area of Nandi County, where the youth were posted, were simply pawns in a wider scheme by political figures whose historical association with intolerance is well documented,” the party said in a statement issued to newsrooms.
It termed the “move as an act of cowardice by well-known political detractors who wants to curtail the growing influence of other leaders in the region and to suppress the democratic space for their own selfish interest.”
Attempts by the Senator to plead with the youths to listen to him from the sunroof of his vehicle fell on deaf ears as they shouted him down, with some heard saying “Ruto, Ruto.”
He then retreated back to his vehicle and turned back.
Senator Moi was later seen sharing a meal with a group of youths and elders at Kabiyet trading centre, a few kilometers from Talai before he left.
There was a heavy security deployment in the area following the early morning stand-off.
Reports indicate that the youths were protesting Senator Moi’s plan to be installed as an elder, a position they said is held by Ruto.
Senator Moi’s plan to be installed as a Kalenjin elder is part of his preparations to take control of Rift Valley as he positions himself to vie for the presidency in 2022.
