Westlands Member of Parliament Tim Wanyonyi has agreed to shelve his Nairobi gubernatorial ambitions and deputise Polycarp Igathe after a protracted stalemate.
The duo will fly the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party flag in polls slated for August 9, 2022.
The deal was closed at State House in Nairobi on Thursday evening after hours of negotiations led by ODM leader Raila Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Sources familiar with the latest development intimated to Kahawa Tungu that the meeting was moved to State House at around 5pm after Odinga failed to prevail upon Wonyonyi to step down for the Jubilee candidate in a meeting with Luhya leaders held at a Nairobi hotel on Thursday afternoon.
Also Read: Jubilee’s Richard Ngatia Says He Learnt of Polycarp Igathe’s Governor Bid on Social Media
Wanyonyi, the sources said, was adamant about not playing second fiddle to any candidate with a section of the Luhya leaders challenging Odinga to state “the stake” of the Luhya people in Azimio. Some threatened to defect from the coalition.
Some senior ODM officials attended the emotionally charged meeting. They included deputy leaders Wycliffe Oparanya (Kakamega governor) and Mombasa’s Ali Hassan Joho, Director of Elections Junet Mohamed (Suna East), Babu Owino (Embakasi East), George Aladwa (Nairobi ODM chairman and Makadara MP), Anthony Oluoch (Mathare MP) and Raphael Wanjala (Budalang’i) and Justus Kizito Mugali (Shinyalu).
Also Read: Polycarp Igathe: An Ode To Chairman – A Man Who Meant Business
During the State House meeting, it was agreed that former Kibwezi MP Philip Kaloki, who had been fronted by Wiper to deputise Igathe, will get the county assembly Speaker slot.
The Nairobi lineup for the Azimio camp will be unveiled later today.
Other candidates who had expressed interest in the Nairobi governor seat on a Jubilee ticket but asked to drop their bids in favour of the former Nairobi deputy governor include businessman Richard Ngatia, Governor Anne Kananu and businesswoman Agnes Kagure.
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