UDA dismisses membership theft claims by Jubilee Party
United Democratic Alliance has dismissed allegations by President Uhuru Kenyatta's Jubilee Party that it stole its membership data.
Through its Secretary-General Veronica Maina, the party said it is only the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties (ORPP) that has the mandate to account for political parties' membership and not Jubilee.
“The days of using ill-informed 'Big Brother' tactics to manipulate and control independent and popular parties ended with the promulgation of the progressive 2010 Constitution,” she said.
She said Jubilee lost its glory and UDA took advantage of it to expand its membership base.
“These activities have been ongoing with emphasis on grassroots support in tandem with our 'Bottom-Up' economic model approach.
"Our county, constituency, and ward coordinators together with our robust head office team have meticulously documented thus this process to guarantee the accuracy,” Maina stated.
She further accused the ruling party of embarking on an onslaught to dismiss its members from positions, saying the move had far-reaching ramifications.
“We understand the panic and attempts by the Jubilee party to drag us into their party's resuscitation efforts.
"For a party that embarked on a vicious and systematic purge of its own members, with high profile humiliation of parliamentary and party leadership, we are surprised that you now realize you do not have members," she added.
Maina asked Jubilee to prepare for another mass movement of members from their party to UDA in the coming days.
“This time around, members are using their e-citizen platforms and we can only imagine Jubilee's reaction to this shift in the political landscape.
"UDA Party is also inviting our bonafide members who are over 10 million-plus to confirm the status of their Jubilee Party resignations on the E-citizen platform and if need be re-apply again for the same," she said.
