NYERI, Kenya, Jul 10 – Kieni Member of Parliament and Jubilee Party Director of Elections Kanini Kega has expressed confidence that Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition party presidential candidate Raila Odinga will get over 50 per cent of the Mount Kenya votes.
Speaking in King’ong’o, Nyeri county, Kega said that the overwhelming support that Raila Odinga and his running mate Martha Karua received during their recent one week trip to the Mount Kenya region was a clear indication that the mountain had endorsed an Azimio la Umoja One Kenya leadership.
“We are very happy with the Mt Kenya Trip that Baba and Martha made to the Mt Kenya region. We are happy with the numbers in Nyeri, of course they were overwhelming especially in areas where in the past you would not get reception. We are at an average of 49 per cent to 50 per cent and that tells you that Baba is winning with a margin of over 50 per cent,” claimed Kega.
The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) final voters’ register show that the Mount Kenya and Rift Valley regions have the highest number of registered voters.
The Rift Valley which has 14 counties has 5.3 million registered voters while the 10 counties that form the Mount Kenya region have 5.7 million voters.
Whereas the IEBC final voter register has a total of 22.1 million registered voters, to win the election, presidential candidates are required to garner more than 50 per cent of the total number of votes cast.
They are also expected to get at least 25 per cent of votes in 24 counties out of the 47 counties.
Kega said that as a coalition they would be using campaign turn-out as the yardstick to measure Raila’s popularity adding that he will clinch victory on the first round of voting.
He added that Raila Odinga has already secured considerable support base from his strong holds; Nyanza, Western, Coast, Eastern, North Eastern and Nairobi and with the Mount Kenya region fully backing his bid, Raila would be the next president.
“This time round it will be a wrap because the rest of the country is giving their vote to Baba.The traditional voting blocks of Raila and now us in Central have agreed that we are going to come out in our numbers and ensure Baba clinches the presidency because we believe he is the better candidate than the other offers we have been given,” he said.
On matters corruption, Kega said that Raila Odinga was the only presidential hopeful who had demonstrated his commitment to fight against the vice.
Terming Deputy President William Ruto and his running mate, Rigathi Gachagua as dealers, Kega said that voters had an easy choice in Raila and Martha who were committed to put in place measures to curb misuse of public resources by public officers.
“As the chairman of the Budget Committee I can tell you that unless we stop corruption,all the other promises that the presidential candidates are making are not going to be met because they need funding.They are only going to be funded if we stop corruption and money is directed to programmes,”he said.
“There is no way we are going to avoid borrowing or save for the country’s future if public resource wastage is not checked.The only person who has committed through his history, manifesto and public pronouncement is Raila Odinga and that is why we have decided to combine forces and back his presidential bid,” he added.
The Kieni legislator also defended President Uhuru Kenyatta’s move to publicly pronounce his support for the Raila Odinga.
He said that the president was only keen on ensuring that the country falls in the hands of the right crop of leaders.
Kega also said that the president is best placed to advise on the most suitable person to succeed him given that he has had an illustrious work experience with both Raila Odinga and the deputy president.
“You have heard the president saying that he is the only person who know the two (Raila Odinga and William Ruto). The president is at an advantageous position to tell Kenyans who among them is best suited to lead this country,” alleged Kega.
“Even during his meeting with religious leaders from Central Kenya he told them why he parted ways and why doesn’t trust William Ruto with the leadership of this country and basically, it is because of the past. The future has everything to do with the past. If you have not been a good person in the past then there is no way you are going to be a good person in the future,” he added.
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