Kuchokoza tu: Raila takes campaign to Mudavadi’s doorstep

Azimio la Umoja presidential flagbearer Raila Odinga will today begin a four-day tour of Western, where he seeks to neutralise gains made by the Kenya Kwanza Alliance led by Deputy President William Ruto. 

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi and Ford-Kenya boss Moses Wetang’ula have been rallying the Luhya community behind the alliance since they broke ranks with Mr Odinga.

More than 2.2 million votes are up for grabs in the August 9 polls in the region, with Kakamega having the largest share at 743,736, Bungoma 559,850, Busia 351,048 and Vihiga 272,409. Trans Nzoia, located in the Rift Valley but with a high Luhya population, has 339,622 votes.

Mr Odinga will begin his tour in Busia County today, where he will visit Teso North and Teso South, before heading to Vihiga on Saturday, where he is set to address a rally in Mr Mudavadi’s home constituency of Sabatia.

He will later go to Kakamega, where he will address rallies in Khwisero, Shibuli, Shianda, Matungu and Mumias. On Sunday, Mr Odinga will attend a church service at Shibuye before proceeding for political engagements in Shinyalu, Khaega, Musoli and Navakholo. 

On Monday, the former Prime Minister will visit Bungoma and engage with residents in Lukuyani, Pan Paper, Lumukanda, Malaga and Kambiri. 

In Busia, he won 86 per cent of the vote in the 2017 General Election. Out of a total of 351,048 voters, Mr Odinga got 239,296, while President Kenyatta managed 34,239. 

Opinion polls show Dr Ruto is slowly eating into Mr Odinga’s strongholds in the region. In 2017, Jubilee snatched 12 MP seats from a region widely controlled by Mr Odinga, with Mr Mudavadi and Mr Wetang’ula fully behind him.

While President Kenyatta had garnered a paltry 66,000 votes from the four Western counties in 2013, in 2017, this figure went up eightfold, raking in an impressive 242,000 votes.

Dr Ruto’s allies say this is proof that constant focus on the region might bring in even more votes to the DP’s camp in August.

In an area that did not have any Jubilee MP in the 2013-2017 Parliament, Jubilee won four of the 12 seats in Kakamega – Ikolomani, Malava, Navakholo and Mumias East – with Dr Ruto having since won over Dr Boni Khalwale, the former Kakamega senator.

Last year, Dr Ruto castigated the Luhya community for taking advantage of his generosity and failing to reciprocate when it comes to voting.

“You are misusing me. When it comes to development projects such as church building, roads, school buses, you look for Ruto, but on the voting day, you go for those people who love riddles,” he said.

According to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission, Busia has registered 55,521 new voters. In Vihiga, Mr Odinga had 179,140 votes in 2017, while President Kenyatta only managed 18, 275. Vihiga has registered 32,346 new voters, bringing the total to 304,755.

Kakamega has registered 97,403 new voters, bringing its new total to 841,139. In the 2017 polls, Mr Odinga led with 483, 157, translating to 64 per cent of the total. President Kenyatta had only 63,399 votes. 

Kakamega is managed by Mr Wycliffe Oparanya, a second-term governor who deputises Mr Odinga in the Orange party. “Our region has always been outside the government. For us to be in government in 2022 we should embrace our neighbours and work with them,” he said.

In Bungoma, Mr Odinga polled 284,786 out of 559,850 votes, while President Kenyatta managed 126,475. The county has registered 84,383 new voters, raising the total to 644,233.