Reports Emerge About Tuju’s Role in Azimio-OKA Alliance

The last-minute entry of the One Kenya Alliance (OKA) into the Azimio la Umoja movement appears to have complicated the power-sharing equation the ODM leader Raila Odinga and his Wiper counterpart Kalonzo Musyoka ahead of the 2022 General Election.

New details have emerged revealing that the Azimio led movement will front the former Jubilee Party Secretary-General Raphael Tuju as its gubernatorial candidate in Nairobi while the former State House Chief of Staff, Nzioka Waita, will be fielded as his running mate. 

Waita has expressed interest to vie for the Machakos gubernatorial seat, on an Azimio ticket. Tuju, on the other hand, has maintained that he can vie for an elective seat in either Siaya or Nairobi County. 

ODM party leader Raila Odinga and Wiper’s Kalonzo Musyoka shake hands after Kalonzo endorsed him for the presidency at Jacaranda Grounds on Saturday, March 12, 2022.

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Kalonzo Musyoka

Speaking to the media, Tuju neither denied nor confirmed the reports and stated that his political aspirations would be unveiled at a later date.

“The uniqueness of my duality is that I am both from Siaya and I have spent decades in Nairobi. I can run for both County and constituency positions in both Nairobi and Siaya. I have reconciled and I am at peace with the duality,” he spoke to Nation.

However, OKA’s entry has thrown a spanner in the works, with reports indicating that Kalonzo demanded a slice of the Nairobi cake in order to shelve his Presidential ambitions in support of the former Premier for the third time. 

Further, it is reported that the Wiper leader insisted that the Machakos Gubernatorial seat should be reserved for his party. 

The dynamics of the Azimio-OKA alliance are set to change should Tuju throw his hat in the Nairobi Gubernatorial race that is set to be a hotly contested seat. 

They include Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja, Kenya Kwanza’s Bishop Margaret Wanjiru, Businesswoman Agnes Kagure and former Nairobi Governor Mike Sonko. 

Others in the race include the President of the Kenya National Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KNCCI) Richard Ngatia, Sonko’s former Spokesperson Ben Mulwa Westlands MP Tim Wanyonyi.

Nzioka Waita Takes a Selfie Next to His Stalled Vehicle During the World Rally Championships on June 26.

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