Wiper MPs were invited to State House but rejected Ruto’s overtures – Kalonzo reveals
Wiper Democratic Movement party leader Kalonzo Musyoka now says members of his outfit recently rejected an invitation to meet President William Ruto at State House.
Speaking after a two-day retreat in Nakuru on Sunday, February 19, the former Vice President alleged that the leaders were among opposition members of parliament who had been invited to the house on the hill in a bid to shift allegiance to the Kenya Kwanza Alliance.
Hailing the MPs allied to the Azimio la Umoja - One Kenya coalition as disciplined, Kalonzo accused Ruto of deliberate efforts to cripple multi-partyism in Kenya and revert the country to a one-party state.
"I want to thank members of the Wiper party who were invited to State House but declined to go. Those who were invited, especially a team from Makueni, in one voice declined the request...if it's development they can get it in Makueni" Kalonzo said after a meeting that brought together governors, senators, MPs and MCAs elected on Wiper ticket.
At least 30 Jubilee and nine ODM MPs recently pledged to work with Kenya Kwanza administration after a meeting with President Ruto and his deputy Rigathi Gachagua at State House.
The legislators have since been labelled traitors by their colleagues in Azimio who claim the coalition's leader Raila Odinga was rigged out in the last presidential election.
Meanwhile, Kalonzo on Sunday affirmed that Wiper will remain in Azimio despite Ruto's overtures.
Kalonzo claimed that Ruto is keen on dividing the Azimio coalition by luring some of its leaders to join the government.
"They have openly used public institutions and public resources to entice individual members 'in the name of development' to break ranks with the political parties. They have systematically tried to erode the all gains of multiparty democracy under our Constitution 2010 and take this nation back to a one-party state," Kalonzo said.
"We the leaders of the Wiper Democratic Movement want to emphasize that we will not allow this country to retrogress to the dark days of the one-party state. Despite all their efforts, we remain united and indeed intact."
Kalonzo said Wiper supports the opposition's series of rallies across the country aimed at resisting the Kenya Kwanza administration's policies.
"It's a well-known fact that this government has consistently lied to you and still continues to lie to you to date. Today the mama mboga can not pay rent the boda boda rider can barely feel their motorbikes our farmers' maize are rotting in silos yet this government is hellbent on feeding Kenyans with GMOs. The average mwananchi is being overtaxed and overburdened. Unemployment is on the rise Kenyans are losing their lives to senseless violence and the state of insecurity is alarming. Enough is enough," Kalonzo said.
