Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka’s withdrawal from the Azimio Alliance could be postponed if the last-minute talks will be fruitful.
This is even after announcing his running mate Andrew Sunkuli for the presidential election on August 9th.
Machakos MP Dan Maanzo, a close confidant of Kalonzo, told a local radio station today that the promise they gave them is not in the constitution.
“In fact, the most they can do is to give him (Kalonzo) a cabinet minister docket then add additional duties to his docket. They knew that what Kalonzo wanted was to give him the running mate slot but they went ahead and gave it out to Karua yet Kalonzo had the votes,” he lamented.
Maanzo emphasized that they will be open for talks with the Odinga-led coalition in the next two weeks, but that if those talks fail, Kalonzo will be okay to go it alone.
“We are still in the race but we are open for talks with principals in the Azimio coalition. What we know however is that we are well on course to be the third force in the August 9 polls,” he said.
According to reports, the Wiper leader, who made his announcement on Monday, wanted the portfolio promised to him be included in the coalition agreement to ensure that the position would be reserved for him.
After it became clear that ODM leader Raila Odinga had chosen NARC Kenya’s Martha Karua as his running mate, Kalonzo bolted from the hastily scheduled marriage with Azimio presidential candidate Raila.
Kalonzo’s allies allege that the Azimio Coalition’s intention to reserve him the position of chief minister if they win the election, is a ruse.
They contend that the chief minister’s docket is not provided for in the constitution, and that the commitment was not reflected in the Azimio Coalition agreement lodged with the Registrar of Political Parties.
Kalonzo indicated while introducing Sunkuli as his deputy, that he will remain silent for a week to hold consultations before the race.
With the new information, it appears that the Wiper leader took a sabbatical from politics to renegotiate his interest in Azimio.
The Wiper leader has until May 30 to decide whether or not to run for president, when the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) will publish the final list of all candidates for the August 9 election.
Kalonzo appears to have had a hidden card when in coalition talks with Azimio la Umoja.
