By Amos Kareithi
Narc-Kenya hit the brick wall again in the rush to December poll as President Kibaki’s re-election vehicle.
It was a long day for the party as disagreements over who should constitute the interim management team dominated, forcing Vice-President Moody Awori to ask the National Governing Council to defer the nomination of national officials for two weeks.
At the heart of Narc-Kenya’s latest headache, which has been snowballing for months, is the chairman’s seat, which is being fought for by five heavyweights — all members of the Cabinet.
The ministers who had by yesterday each lined up supportive branches were Dr Mukhisa Kituyi (Trade), Prof George Saitoti (Education), Mr Kipruto arap Kirwa (Agriculture), Prof Kivutha Kibwana (Environment), and Mr Raphael Tuju (Foreign).
Mr Awori, who reportedly met President Kibaki for two hours before dashing to the meeting where several lists were being floated, said the postponement would allow the party to come up with the ‘face of Kenya’.
Party to hold elections in June
The V-P, who is the party’s Deputy Leader and official spokesman, said the party would hold its ‘troubled’ elections in June.
This is the same month its rival, ODM-Kenya, said it would have picked its flagbearer.
The postponement came as four top contenders for the chairman’s seat furiously worked the spanners against each other.
The party was in a catch-22 position as MPs confided that naming of the new officials could plunge Narc-Kenya into even deeper crisis.
It was an anti-climax for the awaited party move as Awori emerged from KICC; the venue of the party’s National Governing Council, where MPs, ministers and aspirants were told the new line up was yet to be named.
Awori had earlier kept the MPs waiting for two hours, before he turned up for the meeting to make the announcement.
After the meeting held under tight security, the VP disclosed that there has been intense canvassing for the top positions. "Due to the huge interest, the period set aside by the council for two weeks is inadequate. I have been given two more weeks to complete the consultations," he said.
The chairmanship was the contention
Awori, assisted by the nine- member nomination committee, was supposed to come up with a list of 36 people who would occupy the party’s national posts.
Sources at the meeting on Friday intimated to The Saturday Standard that the chairmanship was the contention. Without the heat the race to grab it has generated, the members would have easily agreed on the team.
At one point, the sources intimated the top slot had been reserved for Dr Kituyi. But things changed later after some members separately lobbied for Mr Tuju, Prof Saitoti and Mr Kirwa.
Shortly before the meeting, Kituyi, Kirwa and Saitoti held separate consultations with their supporters in different corners of the venue.
Sources at the meeting, which was closed to the media, said there was intense lobbying by supporters of each aspirant for chairmanship.
The meeting was by invitation and aspirants who had no letters were turned away.
MPs who entered the venue had to sign against their names.
Cabinet ministers who attended the meeting, apart from the aspirants, were: Ms Martha Karua (Justice), Mr Gideon Konchella (Immigration), Mr Ali Chirau Makwere (Transport), Mr Suleiman Shakombo (National Heritage) and Mr Maina Kamanda (Sports).
Groups conversed in conspiratorial tones
The party’s interim chairman, Mr Asman Kamama (MP Baringo East) had resigned to his fate, of losing the seat and opened the meeting by biding the members goodbye.
When the meeting closed and because of the stalemate, he was happy his tenure at the party’s watchtower had been extended.
The members got down to business after Awori arrived accompanied by Narc-Kenya’s director of elections, Mr Lee Karuri.
It lasted barely 15 minutes, and left the anxious members saying it was an anticlimax, thereby opening floodgates for more lobbying.
The meeting room at KICC’s First Floor was a marketplace as small groups conversed in conspiratorial tones.
Over 200 party members, among them, the Cabinet ministers, had to wait for the Vice-President for more than two hours as he was said to be still consulting.
There was a light moment when former Mungiki leader, Mr Ndura Waruingi came to KICC and barred photojournalists from taking his picture.
Members said problem was postponed
Awori told parliamentary aspirants that they would be consulted and included in the party’s National Executive Council.
He further said Kamama would continue being the interim chairman until the NGC meets. Two weeks ago, party bigwigs decided to call off the much-awaited national elections and resolved to pick 36 people who would lead the party tentatively.
The polls for national officials were suspended for fear that they would precipitate a falling out in the run-up to the General Election, thus undermining the party’s popularity.
On Friday, disappointed party members said the problem had been postponed, warning that the more it remained unresolved the riskier it was for the party.
During the meeting, sources said Kituyi wanted to know whether mechanisms had been put in place to eradicate canvassing, saying this was not good for the party.
During the meeting, Saitoti, said he expected wider consultations before the national officials are picked to make them more effective in uniting the party, ahead of the General Election.
Assistant ministers, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri and Mr Kalembe Ndile had suggested that the party goes for a retreat to unlock the stalemate.
Composition of board criticised
This idea was, however, rejected by the VP who felt that his nomination committee would complete the task in a fortnight.
All the aspirants complained that the party constitution favoured MPs, saying the composition of the board that would pick the national officials was biased.
"We are supposed to be represented by two people. They were never consulted when the list was made. We are entitled to 18 of 36 positions," said an aspirant, Mr Peter Mbae.
After the meeting the aspirants regrouped to plan how to approach the next NGC. There was a collective sigh of relief by some MPs and aspirants, who feared that naming the party national officials without building consensus, would have rocked the party.
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Sources: Standard
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