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| Ndaragwa MP Jeremaih Kioni, the introduces UDF presidential aspirant Musalia Mudavadi at Mabera when the party opened it's county offices. |
Since their inclusion
into Migori County the Kuria community, a minority tribe according to numbers
has enjoyed a lot of national political activity with the run up of the coming
elections.
The palpable fear
within the community of being locked out by majority luo tribe within the
county has seen some leaders, including the current MP and Assistant Roads
Minister Wilfred Machage, to unanimously vote for NO during the past referendum
and some to request Kuria to be joined in Rift Valley.
This fear coupled
with the versatility of the tribe in voting for their leaders in line with
their respective clans of; Bakira, Abagumbe, Nyabasi and Burege have seen
chosing candidates from their clans irrespective of the party.
“The Kuria area in
both East and West districts have 33 councilors with ODM being strong in the
county having 11 with the rest divided between the score of PNU affiliate
parties, Kanu and even Kenya Social Congress, a party associated with Mukaru
Ng’ang’a having a civic seat” Tobias Range the Kehancha mayor explains.
Range says this
dynamic politics makes it hard to predict the voting outcome of the Kuria area
which within Nyanza bloc in the 2007 general elections gave President Mwai
Kibaki 23,000 votes against PM Raila Odinga’s 19,000 votes.
Now with this
versatility national parties with a keen interest to try to log out ODM’s grip
from South Nyanza are using Kuria and Kisii area as a launching pad to
infiltrate within Luo Nyanza which are hard to convince to get another party.
“The areas of Homa
Bay and Migori counties are seen as hardcore ODM zones which has made
politicians seeking to open their county offices in Migori to meet the IEBC
guidelines to do so in Kuria which together with Kisii area may be instrumental
in campaigning in Southern Nyanza” Patrice Musabi the Siabai councilor in Kuria
East says.
To show the potential
of the area, within the past two months the area have been a flurry of
activities with New Ford Kenya presidential aspirants Eugene Wamalwa and United
Democratic Front’s Musalia Mudavadi; and Kanu chairman Gideon Moi having a
extensive road campaign in Kuria while giving a wide berth Luo section of
Migori county.
Within this period
UDF opened their county offices at Mabera town where Mudavadi was made a Kuria
elder and christened ‘Mwita Chacha’, New Ford Kenya opened county offices at
Isebania town while Kanu which has its National Vice Chairman and Kuria East
legislative aspirants Shadrack Manga, who is also a former MP, opening two
offices in Kehancha and Ntimaru towns.
This follows prior
opening at Kehancha of Kalonzo Musyoka’s Wiper Democratic Movement-Kenya county
offices and ODM Kuria branch offices with the activities expected to hot up
with the run up to next general elections.
“With the demand by
constitution to get at least 5% of votes in each counties there is a
possibility of Kuria being an alternative in Migori County as a launching pad
for parties hungry for votes in ODM turf to use it as a major base to campaign
within the area” Thomas Mwita Maeta ward Kanu councilor and ward respective
aspirant in next election explains.
Additionally
internecine rivalry within the clans brought by cattle rustling and frequent
war for land and posts can also be used by politicians to get their party
officials to be elected irrespective of the party as long as they get the right
member of the clan to stand.
But ODM sensing this
loophole has resorted to ‘soft-politics’ of embracing the Kuria community
within the county as neighbours brought together by the new county offices.
“We have an office in
Kehancha specifically for Kuria region and also our county chairman John
Meng’anyi Magaiwa is from Kuria, a post he took in the grass roots elections
even when some politicians wanted to field a luo for the post” Joseph Olala the
ODM county secretary says.
There have been
options within local ODM party members to give an ‘acclamation ticket’ between
the majority Luo and minority Kuria which fear being with elections being just
a rubber stamp for their choice
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