The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
By Julius Odeke
Following the creation of several alliances in Kenya’s’ presidential elections that is due in March 4, the joint ticket of Prime Minister Raila Amollo Odinga and Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka would clinch the presidency if elections were held today, an opinion poll shows.
The Infotrak Research and Consulting survey released on Friday shows that the Raila-Kalonzo political marriage under the Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) would win the March 4 presidential election in the first round with 51 per cent of the vote.
The Cord alliance brought in board the PM Odinga, the VP Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka and the Minister of trade Moses Wetangula from FORD party.
Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto of the Jubilee coalition would attract 39 per cent. Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi of the United Democratic Forum (UDF) and the Peter Kenneth-Raphael Tuju alliance were tied at 3 per cent.
The poll found that National Rainbow Coalition (Narc) Kenya’s Martha Karua would get 0.3 per cent and James ole Kiyiapi of the Restore and Build Kenya party 0.1 per cent, while 3 per cent of voters are still undecided.
The Raila-Kalonzo fronted Cord was rated the most popular alliance with an approval rating of 49 per cent.
The Jubilee Coalition, which brings together Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto, has a 40 per cent rating, while UDF stands at 3 per cent.
The Eagle Coalition represented by Peter Kenneth’s Kenya National Congress (KNC) and Raphael Tuju’s Party Of Action (POA) has a 3 per cent approval rating.
Odinga hails from the Luo community in Nyanza province, Kalonzo is from the Kamba community while Wetangula comes from Luyha community in western Kenya. The three communities are among the ethnic groups that form the highest percentage of Kenya’s population.
Kenya’s politics is a bit interesting as top politicians keep changing their political marriage coalitions as it was evident with Charity Ngilu who temporarily came to Cord playing an observer role, Mudavadi changes his twice before settling in Amani coalition where is the flag bearer. What political analysts termed as marriage of inconveniences.
