Rege, Tuju Negotiating increased Number of Luos in Uhuru’s Next Government

Karachuonyo MP Eng. James Rege and head of Jubilee Secretariat Raphael Tuju are negotiating increased presence of Luos in Uhuru regime, including at cabinet level, Kahawa Tungu has learnt.

Engineer Rege, a two-term MP on ODM ticket, decamped from ODM to Jubilee and chose not to defend his seat so as to focus on President Uhuru re-election.

Rege’s defection has seen a number of Luos come out for Jubilee which has strengthened Jubilee in Nyanza, especially Luo Nyanza.

Tuju, a former MP of Rarieda and cabinet minister, is the head of the Jubilee Party Secretariat and doubles as the Secretary General of the Jubilee Party.

Since his fallout with Raila ahead of 2005 referendum, Tuju has either gone it alone or supported the government of the day.

Luos in Government

While pundits see the 2017 election already won by the incumbent regime, largely on account of its development record but partly because of the near total collapse of the opposition campaign which is faltering, focus of a small group of Luo businessmen and professionals is now on the Jubilee regime embracing more members of the Luo community.

President Uhuru has in the past urged Luos to support the government, and numerous national government projects have been initiated in Luo Nyanza, despite the region remaining strongly biased towards opposition party ODM and opposition leader Raila Odinga.

The Luo region is however slowly softening its stand on non-association with anti-Raila political forces owing to the mess that Raila has presided as leader of ODM, which continue to render thousands of Luos poor as the party carries out discredited nominations already choreographed by Odinga family, many who amass millions of shillings during nominations through influence peddling.

Bungled Nominations

Jubilee Party is among the huge beneficiaries of the ODM mess which has seen it field candidates in Luo Nyanza more than ODM fielded in Central Kenya.

What this means is that ODM potency reduces across the country, Jubilee Party is gaining new ground and attracting new adherents.

In Nyanza, a number of current senior ODM politicians who lost in ODM are also said to be negotiating for their space in the next Jubilee dispensation, all aware that Raila led NASA cannot defeat President Uhuru and his deputy William Ruto come August.

Names of Raila’s own cousin and Gem MP Jakoyo Midiwo as well as Rarieda MP Eng. Nicholas Gumbo have been touted as potential appointees of Uhuru in the new regime.