Western Kenya leaders accuse Raila of use-and-dump tactics on Luhyas
Western region leaders yesterday accused Azimio-One Kenya presidential candidate Raila Odinga of waging a war of suppression against the Luhya community.
They said even though the region had supported the former Prime Minister for many years, he had reciprocated by insulting and punishing its leaders.
In particular, they cited the purge of leaders in the two Houses of Parliament where lawmakers from the Western region were replaced by the ODM leadership.
“We are tired of being used and dumped by Raila, time for the divorce has come. As I have said in the past, the process will be noisy, messy and with casualties and Raila will be the casualty,” said Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetangula during a press conference at Musalia Mudavadi Centre in Nairobi.
City governorship
They cited the removal of Wetangula as the Senate minority leader, Benjamin Washiali as the Majority Whip in the National Assembly, Cleophas Malalah as the minority leader and Chris Wamalwa as the deputy minority leader in the National Assembly as among those who had suffered in the hands of the opposition leader.
“Recently, you staged a spectacle where you denied Tim Wanyonyi a ticket to contest for governor of Nairobi. Your schemes then took you in a futile attempt to prevent Johnson Sakaja too from vying for the same seat,” said ANC leader, Musalia Mudavadi.
The leaders said the community had nothing to show for their backing of the former Prime Minister.
“What is it that the six-million Mulembe Nation community hasn’t done for Raila in particular and the Odinga family in general, that he has made it an obsession to hate, demean, discriminate, isolate and frustrate leaders from the community,?” read a statement read by Washiali.
It added: “This is a community and its leadership that has stood with you and your family to the last person throughout your troubled political career. Even when others have declared you a political pariah, an abomination and a leper, the Mulembe Nation didn’t desert you.”
Spoils of toil
They accused Raila of using the community’s electoral numbers to negotiate entry into government after every election circle.
Mudavadi said the community had decided on its political path and no “amount of deception and theatrics would change their choice”.
