Registrar of parties gazettes plan to dethrone Wetang’ula
George Kebaso @Morarak
The Registrar of Political Parties has notified the public of intended changes in the leadership of the Ford Kenya party, putting into jeopardy Senator Moses Wetang’ula’s position.
Wetang’ula and five MPs spent the better of yesterday at the Registrar Anne Nderitu’s office trying to verify with her a file which Kanduyi MP, Wafula Wamunyinyi and his Tongaren counterpart, Eseli Simiyu presented last Friday.
Wafula and Eseli last week staged a coup that sought to kick Wetang’ula out as party leader and deposited documents with the Registrar seeking ratification of the changes. In the changes, Wamunyinyi takes over from Wetang’ula as party leader.
Nderitu yesterday notified the public of the Wamunyiny-Eseli papers as required by law, kick-starting a process that could see the Bungoma Senator Wetang’ula toppled in the party that was founded by Jaramogi Oginga Odinga.
“In exercise of the powers conferred by section 20 (1) ( c ) of the Political Parties Act, 2011, the Registrar of Political parties gives notice that the Ford Kenya Party intends to change its party officials,” reads the notice.
And after four close to four hours, Wetang’ula’s team emerged from the Registrar’s office accusing Wamunyinyi and Eseli of using unorthodox and unconstitutional procedures to snatch the party.
He also declared that he was still the legitimate office bearer.
“We have spent the whole afternoon at the Registrar’s office and perused through the file our illegitimate competitors presented to her last Friday, line by line, and identified a number of anomalies.
First of all the list of National Executive Council’s members they presented to the Registrar is fake.
We have checked the names of those who checked into the Radisson Blu Hotel for the said NEC meeting against the list presented to the registrar, and found out that it does not tally,” he said.
“Further, we want to point out that the shortcuts being taken by Wamunyinyi and his group are completely against democracy and integrity of the second oldest party in the country.
We want to state that we are legitimately in the office, and we shall legitimately remain in office, and we are going to go in a long haul to protect and defend the integrity of this party.”
He was accompanied by Kiminini MP Chris Wamalwa and Kwanza’s Ferdinand Wanyonyi, among others.
