Gasping for breath: Azimio’s dwindling fortunes in wake of Uhuru’s exit

By Silas Apollo

Opposition outfit the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition could be staring at a bleak future following plans by its chairman and former President Uhuru Kenyatta to quit its leadership.

The former Head of State has been facing increasing pressure from leaders and politicians allied with President William Ruto and the Kenya Kwanza administration to quit active politics after losing last year’s Presidential election.

Mr. Kenyatta is also, by law, expected to relinquish any leadership position that he holds in a political party to enjoy his retirement benefits, meaning that he can longer serve as the chairman of the Azimio council – the outfit’s top decision-making organ. 

This is also beside the fact that the former President now has a new role as a regional peace envoy, a position he assumed soon after handing over power to Dr. Ruto last year.

The exit of Mr. Kenyatta could mean that the opposition outfit must now go back to the drawing board and re-strategize, even as it plans to intensify its campaigns against the Kenya Kwanza administration and the leadership of Dr. Ruto. 

The departure of Mr. Kenyatta could deal a blow to the coalition in many ways, especially since he has been the glue that has held the coalition together since its formation in the lead-up to elections last year. 

The former Head of State is said to have been the brains behind the coming together of at least 26-parties that formed the Azimio coalition ahead of the August election last year, several of which have since shifted their allegiance to the Kenya Kwanza alliance following Azimio’s loss in the presidential election.

Besides the departure of the political parties, which include the United Democratic Movement led by Mandera Senator Ali Roba and the Movement for Democracy and Growth of Ugenya MP David Ochieng, the coalition has also witnessed the exit of key politicians and leaders primarily drawn from the Mt Kenya region and Mr. Kenyatta’s Jubilee party.

Just last month, Dr. Ruto, in the company of his deputy Rigathi Gachagua hosted a group of Mt Kenya MPs allied to Mr. Kenyatta and the Jubilee party at State House in what was seen as a strategy by the President to consolidate his grip on the Mt Kenya region. 

The leaders, who included EALA MP Kanini Kega and nominated MP Sabina Chege, have since declared their support for the Kenya Kwanza administration, signaling a growing shift of politicians from the opposition outfit to the government. 

This is a move that some have also argued could present an additional challenge to Mr. Odinga and his allies in the Azimio coalition as more shifts from the Mt Kenya region could render the Azimio coalition less influential in the region and other parts of the country.  

Outside of his traditional support base of the larger Nyanza region, Western Kenya, the Coast region, Eastern and parts of Northern Kenya region, Mr. Odinga and the Azimio coalition have been fighting for additional grounds, especially in the Mt Kenya region to help them win the presidency and also extend their grip across the country.

The exit of Mr. Kenyatta from Azimio may also mean that the populous Mt Kenya region will be left without a presumptive leader and kingpin, creating an opening for Mr. Gachagua, who has, in the last couple of months, been consolidating his support in the region. 

Mr. Gachagua is currently the seniormost leader in the Mt Kenya region, owing to his position as the deputy president, a position he has used to woo leaders, including those allied to the Jubilee party and other political parties to the Kenya Kwanza administration. 

Such a move is widely seen by many as an attempt by Mr. Gachagua, and by extension, Mr. Ruto – to consolidate their support in the region, thereby weakening Mr. Odinga’s support or any other opposing voice that may rise against the Kenya Kwanza administration. 

Consequently, Mr. Odinga, who heavily relied on Mr. Kenyatta and his allies in the Jubilee party to rally for support in the region, will remain largely exposed in their attempts to form a formidable movement and counter President Ruto and his Kenya Kwanza administration moving forward.

The Orange party leader and the Azimio coalition have also been forced to contend with the growing reluctance by some of its elected leaders – including those from Mr. Odinga’s backyard to boycott some of the Azimio’s planned protests against Dr. Ruto.

Over the last couple of months, the coalition has been fighting allegations and accusations that some of its leaders had, instead of joining the protest campaigns against Dr. Ruto, decided to concentrate on working with the government to drive growth and development in their regions.

The growing reluctance within the coalition means that Mr. Odinga, and by extension, the Azimio Coalition, may not only have to contend with an internal rebellion within the outfit but also a slowed momentum in its campaigns against the Kenya Kwanza administration.

Without Mr. Kenyatta, the Azimio coalition will only be left with Wiper Party leader Kalonzo Musyoka, Martha Karua of Narc-Kenya, and Eugene Wamalwa of DAP-Kenya, as some of its active and senior-most leaders. 

Those pushing for Mr. Kenyatta’s exit from the Azimio coalition have argued that according to Section 6(1) of the Presidential Retirement Benefits Act, a retired president cannot hold office in any political party for more than six months after ceasing to hold office as President.

On this basis, leaders allied to Dr. Ruto, like Nandi senator Samson Cherargei have been calling for the resignation of Mr. Kenyatta from his position as the chairman of the Azimio Council – the top decision-making organ
of the coalition. 

“H.E. Ruto should ask Uhuru to step down from his role of Peace envoy to DRC for the continued undermining of our government. His role in Azimio-OKA activities of allegedly funding political rallies is proof enough,” Mr. Cherargei recently said while pushing for Mr. Kenyatta’s exit from the coalition. (