Amani National Congress Leader Musalia Mudavadi has asked President Uhuru Kenyatta and Cord Leader Raila Odinga to both drop out of the presidential race and instead declare “Mudavadi tosha”.
Mudavadi made his request as President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto were scheduled to hold a massive rally at Afraha Stadium in Nakuru to cement the Jubilee alliance and launch their 2017 campaign.
Mudavadi said he had supported the two before and it was now appropriate that the two returned the favour.
“It is curious that they want my support all the time. Why can’t they support me too?,” he asked.
“I’m a safe pair of hands that the country needs, especially now because both sides are polarizing the country,” said Mudavadi.
He said Kenya was getting tired of the divisive politics being played by both Jubilee and Cord.
Mudavadi, the quintessential gentleman of Kenyan politics, has launched his 2017 bid in earnest by touring across the country.
This weekend, the former land economist will be in populous Bungoma county. He is expected to end up in Tongaren, home area of Moses Wetangu’la where he is expected to tell off the Ford Kenya leader.
Wetang’ula has launched his bid for the Cord ticket and has asked Mudavadi to join him to unite the Luhya vote behind one candidate and boost the chances of a Luhya becoming president.
Mudavadi has been Vice-President in the late days of the Moi regime before becoming ODM Deputy Leader and Deputy Prime Minister in President Kibaki’s coalition government.
He now want to make a second bid for the top job although he only got 3.9 percent in the 2013 presidential election, way behind Uhuru and Raila but ahead of the other alternative candidates.
His supporters consider him a sober, moderate and non-combative politician.
The front runners for 2017 are Raila Odinga and Uhuru Kenyatta who got 26 and 45 percent respectively in the recent Infotrak poll on presidential preferences.
But Mudavadi could have a key role to play should there be a run-off.
The soft-spoken politician is often accused of being indecisive but recently he has tried to shed that image by strongly criticizing both government and opposition.
Mudavadi considers himself a viable alternative to the two mainstream parties, Jubilee and Cord.
He claims Jubilee is corrupt and ODM and Cord are incompetent.
“Jubilee has ran the country badly with huge unsustainable debts. Raila
Source-the-star.co.ke
