Be Vigilant,the Government May Arrest You!They are Desperate to Get a Speaker~Ruto Warns Kenya Kwanza MPs

President-elect William Ruto has said Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition is desperate to back Speaker positions in the Senate and the National Assembly.

Speaking when he met elected leaders under Kenya Kwanza on Wednesday, September 7, Ruto said the MPs should not miss the voting session to ensure the alliance backs the two coveted positions.

“People who can use the Security Committee to try and overturn the will of the people can do worse. They’re very desperate to have the Speaker of either House,” he told the legislators ahead of Thursday’s election in Parliament.

He urged the elected MPs to stay vigilant saying they may be arrested ahead of tomorrow.

“Be careful, they could possibly arrest some of you just to reduce our numbers,” he said.

The National Assembly and the Senate will on Thursday, September 7 become theatres of political contests when President-elect William Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza Alliance will face off with the Opposition Azimio-One Kenya coalition in the battle to elect Speakers for both Houses.

The elections — the second order of business once the Houses open for the 13th session — are likely to trigger acrimonious exchanges on the floors of the respective Houses given the razor-thin differences in the numbers of the two coalitions.

The battle comes less than a week after Monday’s Supreme Court ruling in which the seven judges upheld the declaration of Ruto as President-elect. The judges also threw out the petition filed by Azimio’s Raila Odinga, who finished second in the race.

Within hours of the ruling, President Uhuru Kenyatta published two Kenya Gazette notices convening the two Houses, which will have only three businesses tomorrow; the swearing-in of the legislators, the election of the respective Speakers and the election of Deputy Speakers.

On Tuesday, September 6, 19 individuals had applied for the position of the Speaker of the National Assembly while another 17 had expressed interest in the Senate position.

Kenya Kwanza is fronting Bungoma Senator Moses Wetang’ula for National Assembly Speaker while Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka will be the Azimio candidate.

Whoever wins the seat will become the third most powerful man in the Executive after the President and Deputy President.

In the Senate, Kenya Kwanza made last-minute changes by nominating former Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar Hassan to replace former Kilifi Governor Amason Kingi as its preferred candidate.

At the weekend, while on a tour of Bungoma, Ruto indicated that Kenya Kwanza would reserve the seat for a candidate from the Coast to foster regional balance. Omar lost last week in the race to succeed Hassan Joho as Mombasa governor after he was defeated by Azimio’s Abdulswamad Sharrif Nassir.

A former Speaker of the National Assembly, Kenneth Marende, has been picked as the Azimio nominee for Senate Speaker.

Farah Maalim of Wiper, an Azimio affiliate, has applied for the position of Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly. He will, among others, face of with Gladys Shollei, the Kenya Kwanza candidate.