Ngunjiri Wambugu, the Nyeri Town Member of Parliament has explained why most of Deputy President William Ruto’s allies at the Senate voted for in favour of ousting of Kithure Kindiki as the Senate Deputy Speaker.
Wambugu on Saturday, May 24, opined that Ruto was neither in charge of government or opposition hence his lack of political numbers.
The MP noted that after the chest-thumping from Jubilee’s Tanga Tanga faction, everyone was surprised that they only managed to raise seven against 54 votes to save their ally Kithure Kindiki with one of the votes being his.
“The truth is that Tanga Tanga never had numbers. In politics – especially in a democratic state like ours, numbers are either in support of the government; or against the government. Ruto is neither in charge of government nor opposition.
“Uhuru has numbers. Raila has numbers. Kalonzo has numbers. Musalia has numbers. Gideon has numbers. Even Wetangula has numbers,” revealed Kindiki.
Wambugu added that Ruto had no platform to mobilise numbers because he was neither the leader of the ruling party nor the opposition and was not a party leader.
Kithure Kindiki was ousted on Friday, May 22 after a heated debate in the Senate with most members of the house accusing him of party disloyalty and disrespect to the party leader.
Only Kipchumba Murkomen, Aaron Cheruiyot, Christopher Langat, Susan Kihika, John Kinyua, Samson Cherargey and Kindiki himself voted against his removal.
“The Jubilee Party has lost confidence in his ability to represent the interests of the Party in Senate. Every Jubilee Senator who wishes well for the party voted to remove him from the Deputy Speaker’s office,” the legislator asserted.
He defended President Uhuru Kenyatta from accusations of dictatorship over the purge on Jubilee rebels.
“The fact that some members have been exercising bad manners and rebelling against the party, and now the party has decided to instill discipline, does not mean the President is being a dictator. Democracy means you disagree internally within the party but agree and support the party publicly outside” he added.
Wambugu calmed fears of impeaching Ruto arguing that he was not a threat to Uhuru to an extent he would need to be removed from office adding that “he can be managed, quite easily, within existing structures.”
