Jubilee party members in the port city of Mombasa are a disgruntled lot over alleged neglect by Uhuru Kenyatta and his decision to embrace Mombasa governor Hassan Joho who has no time for the ruling party followers.
Joho
Joho, it is claimed, wants to wipe out Jubilee support in the county to lock out William Ruto from inheriting the existing party structures, machinery and support.
Jubilee members are crying foul, saying Uhuru betrayed them after he entered into a working relationship with the governor whom they had been fighting ahead of the 2017 general elections. He on the other hand, abused the president left, right and centre
“Uhuru has betrayed us. We fought hard for his reelection as Joho and others tried every trick in the book to spoil his chances. But surprisingly, the Mombasa governor is now the most trusted supporter of the president in Mombasa and those who stood with him at his hour of need have been reduced to mere spectators,” lamented Omar Kassim
Kassim said it is disheartening to see cartels that fought the Jubilee administration being accorded job and business opportunities at the expense of genuine supporters who have stood with Uhuru since 2013 general elections.
“Where is fairness? We keep hearing how Joho has landed an SGR contract worth billions of shillings while Jubilee supporters are languishing in joblessness and poverty. After winning, the president says he has no time for politics, this is escapist. Former president Moi never forgot those who stood with him,” he said
According to Kassim, if a referendum is held, majority of the Jubilee supporters in Mombasa will side with Ruto as a protest over the manner in which Uhuru has treated his Mombasa supporters.
He said it is only Tourism CS Najib Balala who has enjoyed the “fruits” of Jubilee yet he did not work as hard as many business people who offered their resources and time to defend and seek votes for Jubilee.
“Ruto has demonstrated that he never forgets his friends and those who stand with him. He knows how to appreciate like Moi. This is why Jubilee support base in Mombasa will automatically shift to him when the time comes. At various private gatherings, people have vowed never to vote for Uhuru or his preferred successor,” Kassim further pointed out.
CS Balala
In various parastatal appointments in the last few months, Mombasa has largely been ignored except a few appointments made by Balala which were criticised as having favoured his close family members.
Joho has been consolidating his support towards the next general elections by reaching out to his former Jubilee opponents Suleiman Shahbal and Balala both of whom he has promised to support to take over from him.
The county chief has announced his intention to contest for presidency but many think this is a mere strategy to make himself relevant in post-Uhuru era. According to analysts, he does not even command the entire Coast. The Taita and Mijikenda leaders have distanced themselves from the Joho-for-president campaigns.
