“TNA is IEBC and IEBC is TNA. TNA must have tampered with the voter
register, hence deleting Kethi’s name,” Mr Musyoka told a press
conference in Nairobi on Tuesday.
Ms Kilonzo had been cleared by the Wiper Democratic Party, which Mr
Musyoka leads, to vie for the Makueni senatorial seat left vacant by the
death of her father, Mutula Kilonzo.
Wiper Democratic Party is allied to Cord which lost the March 4
General Election to the Jubilee Alliance. The alliance comprises The
National Alliance (TNA) and the United Republican Party (URP). TNA is
led by President Uhuru Kenyatta while URP is led by Deputy President
William Ruto.
Mr Musyoka said TNA was working with the Independent Electoral and
Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to lock out Ms Kilonzo from the senatorial
race slated for July 22.
“Of concern is the manner in which TNA, a major player in the Jubilee
Coalition, raised the issue of Kethi’s voter registration status
without the knowledge of the electoral body, begging the question of who
is the custodian of the IEBC vote register,” he said.
However, TNA secretary general Onyango Oloo denied the claims and told Cord to carry its own cross.
“No scape-goat, no blame game will clean Wiper and Cord’s act of
trying to hoodwink Kenyans that its candidate presented a legal document
for clearance to vie for the seat,” Mr Oloo said in a telephone
interview.
He said TNA has no business interfering with the will of Kenyans.
Even as Cord was protesting, IEBC on Tuesday gazetted the names of the four candidates who will contest in the by-election.
They are former MP Philip Kaloki (Narc), Mr Urbanus Katumo Muthoka
(an independent candidate), Jane Wavinya Muoka (Labour Party of Kenya)
and Mr John Harun Mwau (Pick).
Commission chairman Ahmed Issack Hassan also gazetted 125 polling centres in Makueni County ahead of the by-election.
Mr Hassan’s notice is dated July 8, the same day the IEBC tribunal ruled on Ms Kilonzo’s eligibility case.