NARC Kenya and its party leader, Martha Karua, have left the Azimio la Umoja coalition.
Karua took to her social media platforms to share a letter from the party dated Thursday, July 25, which reads “Kindly take note that our stay in Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition is not tenable due to the prevailing political developments.”
“As NARC Kenya by way of this letter, we are giving notice to exit the Coalition as stipulated in the exit clause (s) in the Coalition Agreement. This notice is effective from the date of this letter,” reads the letter in part.
Martha Karua with Raila Odinga during a past Azimio la Umoja event. /FILE
The exit means that her political relationship with Azimio’s leader, Raila Odinga, is over. She exits having been the presidential running mate to Raila Odinga during the 2022 general elections.
Her later came in the backdrop of political turbulence within the Azimio la Umoja Coalition over courting the Kenya Kwanza government, one the coalition had opposed for close to two years, and even before they lost the 2022 general elections.
In an earlier interview with Ghetto Radio, Karua offered a hint that the coalition is walking on a tightrope in terms of its lifespan and it is only a matter of time before it is dissolved for good.
Karua asserted that the coalition had been pulling in different directions since the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) began its talks.
“Azimio is shaky and I think after yesterday, it’s done. I’m saying shaky because, since the NADCO talks, we’ve been pulling in different directions.
“The only thing that has saved us is that we said at the beginning of this year, let every party go and build itself. So I’ve been busy with Narc-Kenya and not busy with Azimio,” Karua remarked.
On President William Ruto’s nomination of four ODM members to the cabinet, the NARC Kenya leader noted that she was not surprised.
“I was not surprised because of Ruto’s modus operandi, his way of working, he is everything. He is a jack of all trades. I am sure that he can appoint the CSs, but he will be the one running the ministries. It is a one-man show,” Karua stated.
On Wednesday, President Ruto nominated John Mbadi, Hassan Joho, Wycliffe Oparanya and Opiyo Wandayi to the cabinet, all under Azimio, a matter which caused chaos between the coalition’s party affiliates.
A section of leaders have come out guns blazing over the move conflicting with the outcomes, saying that the nominations were not agreed upon in both the Orange Democratic Movement and Azimio la Umoja’s Parliamentary Group Meetings.
Some ODM Members of Parliament held a press briefing on Thursday, July 25, distancing themselves from the move by some leaders to work with the Kenya Kwanza administration.
The party leader, Raila Odinga, threw a twist and even though he denied that he was entering into a coalition with the government, he did not reveal whether he held talks with his political rival nor did he really comment on the nominations.
Azimio Leader, Raila Odinga delivers a speech on June 5, 2024. /MUSALIA MUDAVADI
