There was drama at a top city hotel over the weekend when furious Jubilee aspirants from Murang’a County trashed opinion polls that had been conducted by the national government.
The ruling party had intended to use the polls to pick its candidates in contested races from senatorial to county assembly seats.
The aspirants were summoned to the Windsor Golf & Country Club, where they met a five-member panel that spelt out the alternative terms to resolve the stalemates.
The panel had Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia, County Commissioner Karuku Ngumo, Murang’a Woman Rep Sabina Chege, former Murang’a Deputy Governor Gakure Monyo and Ms Winnie Guchu.
Things, however, went south when the aspirants claimed that the polls conducted by the national government’s administration officers were fake. They singled out Ichagaki ward in Maragua Constituency, where all candidates regardless of party affiliation were polled.
“Mr Hillary Muigai, who belongs to the United Democratic Alliance party, was rated at 1 per cent. The Jubilee poll had been submitted to the party on April 10. When the UDA polls were conducted on April 14, Mr Muigai emerged the winner with 63 per cent of the votes cast, trashing the administration data,” said Jubilee aspirant Charles Mwangi. “The one who had been slotted as the most popular in the opinion poll, Mr Ndung’u Wangirithi, came last.”
The Jubilee aspirants in the race are Mr Mwangi, Mr Robert Kibandi and Mohammed Ali Mzee. The party wanted to give the ticket to Mr Kibandi.
“The county commissioner was directed to go back to the field and correct the opinion poll results and we were also told to continue with dialogue among ourselves and if we failed to agree, then we come together, fundraise and finance nominations to separate us,” said Mr Mwangi.
“We have about 140 contests that we have to resolve by April 22 … In Murang’a, we have 70 tickets yet to be concluded,” said Murang’a South Jubilee coordinator Elias Mbau.
The party has failed to unlock the stalemate in some races, such as in Nyandarua, where Governor Francis Kimemia is fighting with former Water CS Sicily Kariuki for the ticket. In the Murang’a senatorial race, Prof Peter Kagwanja is in a fight with Mr Kembi Gitura while Mathioya MP Peter Kimari is in a tight race with businessman Johnson Kihato.
Attempts to promise some aspirants jobs after the August polls were turned down on grounds that it was a risky bet not supported by law.
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