Jubilee reaps big as party-hopping deadline lapses » Capital News

NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 25 – The ruling Jubilee party reaped big Friday as aspirants rushed to beat the midnight deadline for party-hopping.

After Friday, every aspirant is required to have identified the political parties they are vying on in the August 9 election.

And so it was the perfect time for political parties to receive last-minute defectors jumping from one party to the other.

President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party that was relaunched last month received the highest number of defectors, including from Deputy President William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance (UDA)

Even though Ruto too received defectors to his party, including Narok Governor Samuel Ole Tunai, it was Jubilee that reaped big.

Notable figures to decamp to the jubilee party include Taita Taveta Governor Granton Samboja and former Wiper deputy party leader David Musila who is seeking to vie for the gubernatorial post under the party. He will be facing it off with incumbent Charity Ngilu, who is defending the seat under her National Rainbow Coalition party (NARC).

Also joining the Jubilee party was the seventy-two-year-old Wambura Wa Maranga, who is seeking the Mathira Constituency seat in Nyeri County.

“Mathira wants transformative leadership with a transformative agenda. I am the transformative leader with development ideas and I have endeared myself to the voters,” said Maranga.

Those in the race with her are Rigathi Gachagua, 53, of Jubilee Party, the incumbent MP Peter Weru, 40, and George Warutere Thinwa, 27, of Narc Kenya.

The current Ol Kalao Member of Parliament David Kiaraho too decamped from Ruto’s UDA to Jubilee.

“I took into consideration so many factors and I feel I will be able to serve my people to the best of my capacity when I am in the Jubilee party. That is why I am back in the fold,” he said.

Esther Gathogo who ditched UDA for the Jubilee party will be racing for the Member of Parliament post in Ruiru. 

Ndungu Githinji former Tetu MP moved camps to the Jubilee party from The National Alliance (TNA) and will vie for the same post.

Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni lauded the aspirants for making what he termed as “the right move” as he received them at the party headquarters in Pangani, Nairobi.

Kioni claimed that the smaller parties within the Kenya Kwanza Alliance which have support from the central region are aimed at splitting the vote-rich region ahead of the August 9 polls.

“Jubilee is a party for the whole country; it is also the party for Mount Kenya. So don’t lie to us and to Kenyans we know those parties are small windows meant to take people to UDA through the back door,” said Kioni.

Kioni also announced that by the end of Saturday, the Jubilee party will submit the list of all aspirants to the Registrar of Political parties as well as the list of members.

“We will further go ahead and submit the list to the Speaker of the National Assembly Justin Muturi so that it is clear who the Jubilee members and those that have decamped. This will enable them manage their houses.”

However, elected leaders currently in office do not have to resign from their positions even if they switch parties.

Already, several politicians have switched parties, some surprises in the past week.