Why Raila is giving in to Kikuyu demands for Nairobi governorship

ODM leader Raila Odinga believes his bid to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta got a major boost after he was endorsed by a team of Mount Kenya billionaires to protect their businesses.

The promise to back Odinga comes a midst a grand search for President Uhuru Kenyatta’s successor or kingpin of the vote rich region that has never lacked a proper presidential candidate in the previous polls.

The GEMA group made it clear that it had been tasked by the President to present a name of a possible candidate who would take care of their business interests when he retires in August next year.

To make the rare move of backing Odinga, the oligarchs pushed the ODM leader to accept their tough demands which include having their kinsmen occupy the office of the deputy president, top cabinet positions and Nairobi governorship.

Odinga who has failed to clinch presidency in his four attempts has already surrendered Nairobi top seat to the Kikuyu nation as part of ODM power games with Jubilee.

Kikuyu candidates failed in 2013 and 2017 pushing the president to form the Nairobi Metropolitan Services to run the country’s capital which was first run by ODM’s Evans Kidero and Mike Sonko who comes from the Kamba community.

Weak aspirants from Mt. Kenya region eyeing the Nairobi governor’s seat in next year’s general elections have opted to take a low profile as they push Odinga to hand them the slot through tribal arithmetic and political realignments at the national level.

Odinga now reason that most of the city business are in the hands of Kikuyus and so they should control City Hall, the den of corruption and massive looting.

President Kenyatta’s administration has however been accused of impoverishing Kikuyus in Nairobi where he planted Maj.Gen Mohamed Badi to run the show.

ODM reason that the Deputy President Dr. William Ruto’s Kalenjin vote bloc is minimal in city politics therefore a combination of Kikuyus, Luos and a section of Luhyas, Kisiis and Somalis will control Nairobi politics.

Though there are fears that a section of Kikuyus will back UDA for Nairobi governorship, Odinga still believes that a split among them will cost them since all Luos will vote in favour of a Kikuyu governor.

The GEMAs allied to Kenyatta and Odinga do not have a strong candidate but Odinga plans to lock out Ruto in city politics by sharing of parliamentary seats with ‘Handshake’ friendly parties.

Raila wants the rumored drug lord Harun Mwau or tycoon Peter Muthoka who comes from the Kamba extract as his target for Nairobi senatorial seat.

ODM leaders who has shift from his combative tact for presidency now prefers Kenya Chamber of Commerce president Richard Ngatia, Dennis Waweru or Polycarp Igathe.

Almost every aspirants has adopted a wait-and-see pose hoping to benefit from possible coalitions to boost their chances of clinching Nairobi top seat.

ANC plans to field Senator Johnson Sakaja for the seat that has also attracted tycoon Jimna Mbaru and Peter Chege

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