Cord leader Raila Odinga Tuesday held another crisis meeting with Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee members from Cord to save Budalang’i MP Ababu Namwamba from the destructive bribery claims facing him.
The meeting at Mr Odinga’s Capitol Hill office turned stormy after some of the committee members charged at Mr Namwamba, accusing him of scandalising them in what they termed as an attempt to blackmail them.
They accused him of engaging in a clandestine media campaign to spread filth about his colleagues to save himself from the political storm caused by the bribery claims against him.
MPs John Mbadi (Suba), Ahmed Ibrahim Abass (Ijaara) and Eddick Anyanga (Nyatike) were among those who attended yesterday’s meeting.
Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetangula and Mombasa Senator Omar Hassan were also present at the meeting whose agenda was to try to reconcile Mr Namwamba and the MPs whose names he had mentioned in the multi-million bribery scam that has dented the image of the powerful watchdog committee.
After the Capitol Hill meeting, Mr Wetangula was to hold a joint meeting with Cord members of the Powers and Privileges Committee chaired by Kuresoi North MP Moses Cheboi at his offices at Parliament buildings.
DISAPPOINTED
“Yes, Mr Odinga has met the PAC members but some of us who were busy did not make it,” said Suna East MP Junet Mohammed.
Mr Anyanga and Mr Abbas were said to have been disappointed with the manner in which Mr Namwamba was handling the crisis.
Mr Namwamba allegedly charged at the two MPs, forcing Mr Odinga to intervene before the Budalang’i MP apologised to his two colleagues.
The two MPs accused Mr Namwamba of maliciously throwing their names into the bribery investigation after they signed a petition to kick him out as PAC chairman.
“The MPs also accused him of chronic arrogance, leadership failures, poor interpersonal skills and intentional malice. Mr Odinga was also shocked at the anger but he managed to contain them,” said one of the MPs who attended the meeting.
Mr Abbas said that Mr Namwamba should be discharged from the committee and accused him of displaying untrustworthy conduct which could not be tolerated.
Nakuru Town West MP Samuel Arama, who had also been mentioned adversely, described Mr Namwamba as an intolerable politician who had mastered “the art of blackmail” every time he was in a political crisis.
Separately, National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale said the conduct of Mr Namwamba had put Mr Odinga, who has for years fought against corruption, in a precarious position.
“Ababu wants to kill the legacy of Raila Odinga. I wonder why ODM has not sought to find out where Namwamba got the money he used in the ODM elections. Who funded him?” the MP asked.
