Deputy President William Ruto’s tanga tanga group was thrown into a political spin after senior Central Kenya leaders began a series of meetings aimed at locking him out of the region.
Coming days after National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi was installed as the Mt Kenya spokesman by a widely criticized group of elders, the meeting raised the political stakes as the Uhuru Kenyatta succession took centre stage.
The meeting at Panafric Hotel in Nairobi brought together Murang’a governors Mwangi Wa Iria (Muranga), Anne Waiguru (Kirinyaga), Lee Kinyanjui (Nakuru), Mutahi Kahiga (Nyeri), former Kiambu Governor William Kabogo, former Tetu MP Ndungu Gathenji, former Kigumo MP Jamleck Kamau, former Mathira MP Peter Weru and BBI Secretariat co-chair Dennis Waweru.
The team said they were interested in building Mt Kenya unity to ensure that the region spoke in one voice so that their numbers could count.
Kabogo while answering media questions regarding the political direction of the region said nobody can rule out the region from producing a presidential candidate.
Mwangi Wa Iria declined to comment on the issue of the coronation of Muturi at the holy Agikuyu shrine last weekend saying that was a cultural matter and were now discussing politics and development.
Waweru who is a former Dagoretti South MP said the leaders would continue meeting to cultivate unity and the next meeting will be held in Nyeri in 10 days.
Wednesday’s meeting has thrown the tanga tanga wing of DP Ruto off balance as more forces opposed to him continue to coalesce together with the aim of reducing his influence in the Mt Kenya region ahead of 2022 general elections.
Waiguru said they had consulted as leaders from Mt Kenya and agreed to reach out to other stakeholders within the region so as to secure their votes and make them count in 2022.
