Raila fights to keep Coast stranglehold
With the countdown to August 9 General Election well underway—163 days to go—observers argue that the close to two million Coast vote basket remains crucial to candidates seeking to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Even though Coast is a perceived ODM stronghold, pundits argue that recent events in Kwale and Kilifi where political heavyweights Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya and his Deputy Fatma Achani as well as Malindi MP Aisha Jumwa are leading the Kenya Kwanza Alliance onslaught in the region shaping up into a battle ground for the presidential race.
However, with Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi’s Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) Party signing a pact with Jubilee party now an affiliate of Azimio la Umoja coalition, there is a growing assumption the deal could seal Deputy President William Ruto’s fate in Kilifi.
Last year, Kingi sent shockwaves with a public outburst against ODM leader Raila Odinga and his party after the two differed over the proposal to form a Coast party. The gesture was seen as a move that could directly benefit Ruto’s forays in the region as Kingi, one of Raila’s renowned lieutenants in Coast, then stood a chance of being captured by the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) wave, to team up with Jumwa in locking Raila out of Kilifi County.
But now with PAA joining Jubilee and ultimately Azimio spells a completely different ballgame, with Kilifi now Raila’s to lose.
It comes hot on the heels of Raila’s recent four-day Azimio la Umoja movement tour at the Coast, in a visit which observers say is likely to strengthen his influence in the region and bolster his chances for presidency.
On a mission to secure the Coast region vote basket, Raila led a series of rallies in Kilifi, Mombasa, Kwale and Taita Taveta Counties where he promoted himself as the safe “pair of hands” that can be trusted to form the next government.
Third liberation
ODM leader reiterated his mission to liberate the country’s economy as part of the third liberation, promising a bag of goodies for the region should he be elected as the fifth president of Kenya.
From promising to convert the port City of Mombasa to Dubai, to reviving the forgotten railway line in Taita Taveta, solving the landlessness among other problems, Raila pledged to transform the economy of the country.
Raila’s visit triggered mixed reactions with observers reckoning that the ODM leader made crucial gains during the tour with others saying the tour exposed his fast fading influence and that of his party ODM in the region.
Political analyst Herman Manyora observes that Coast being one of the ODM strongholds where Raila commands influence remains an important region for the ODM leader’s quest for presidency.
“Coast is Raila’s stronghold and as usual, you would want to protect tour stronghold. There are those who feel they can seduce the Coastal people to desert Raila. For that reason he must be vigilant and that is why you see him going there from time to time,” Manyora said.
While noting that Coast remains an Azimio stranglehold, he said the ODM party leader’s visit made sufficient gains as his rallies were graced by new political names from the region that campaigned against him in previous contests.
During his tour Raila was accompanied by Kilifi Governorship aspirant Gideon Mung’aro who campaigned against him in the last general election, Lung’anzi Chai who until recently was a United Democratic Alliance (UDA) governorship aspirant in Kwale, Taita Taveta Governor Granton Samboja and Taveta MP Naomi Shaban among other new faces in his team.
According to Manyora, even though DP Ruto’s UDA has made some forays into Coast, he said Raila has a potential to walk away with more than 70 per cent of the two million votes.
