Amani National Congress (ANC) party leader Musalia Mudavadi has reiterated that the party fully supports Bungoma Senator Moses Wetangula as the Senate Minority Leader, terming the Senator’s ouster as a ‘tragic mischief’. Addressing the press in Nairobi after the NEC party meeting on Tuesday, Mudavadi said the state of affairs in NASA and obedience to the coalition statutes have deteriorated, “The latest is the effort to embarrass Senator Wetangula when people purport to dethrone him as the Leader of Minority. Going forward we won’t accept this kind of mischief,” he said, “We assure Wetangula of our support and confidence in him as the leader of Minority in the Senate, and we call upon everyone else to respect this decision.”
Parties in NASA, specifically Ford Kenya, ANC, and Wiper have expressed their dissatisfaction with the way ODM is conducting its business, with some leaders seeing it as a mechanism aimed at disorienting the coalition. With discussions covering the role ODM and Jubilee will play together, Mudavadi said any exercise that seeks to subvert the rule of the new Constitution should be rejected, given that any partnership between opposition parties and the government weakens the stance of the opposition, contrary to the law. “Any exercise that sabotages the promises of the Constitution must be rejected. We will resist any attempt to undermine multiparty democracy and the role of a strong political opposition,” he said. He said ANC will not accept to form a coalition with the government, citing that NASA pledged to fight for Kenyans and realize the dreams of democratic justice many have, “We can’t accept a coalition or to be part of the common government with Jubilee. NASA must remain the outside party especially in reforms dialogue,” he said, “We resist the allures of high office to stay with the people of Kenya and if necessary, we will remain alone as the opposition.”
He further criticized ODM’s role in the divisive scenes witnessed in NASA, saying that if they can’t embrace the rules of the party, they wouldn’t be able to embrace the rules of the highest office, “What we purpose to be when we take over power is determined by how we conduct ourselves in the present environment. NASA partners must respect all the coalition agreements,” he stressed.