Former president Uhuru Kenyatta now asserts that the Kenya Kwanza government planned and solved the problems plaguing the Jubilee Party with its assistance.
While it was initially his intention to transfer control of the party to new leadership after leaving the presidency, Uhuru said that the alleged attempt by government operatives to remove him from office forcibly did not sit well with him.
The former head of state criticized the action as an insult to the nation's democracy and vowed to continue supporting the party he had helped establish.
"My plan was always to give up my party, but the coup this government planned to take it over violently I utterly rejected. During a speech on Friday outside his son's Karen house, he added, "I said let the members decide, but I won't hand over to some puppet group of people just because they have government support. That is not democracy.
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My plan was to surrender my party, but what I completely rejected was the coup that was planned by this government to take over my party forcefully - Former President Uhuru Kenyatta pic.twitter.com/nbNVNp05aS
— Citizen TV Kenya (@citizentvkenya) July 21, 2023
That is not to say that I wasn't ready, willing, and able to turn over. Still, I thought it to be wholly unacceptable and illegitimate in a democratic society to be compelled to turn over to a group of puppeteers. I got up and declared that I would pass over leadership to whoever the Jubilee members elected to lead them.
The EALA MP Kanini Kega and his Nominated counterpart Sabina Chege were perceived as being at the forefront of the scheme to steal control of the political organization from his grasp. Still, Uhuru went on to say that he has no ill will toward them.
I don't care; it's their prerogative to conduct themselves as they like. I believe that the membership, the candidates, and the platform that Jubilee ran on need to be defended. He said I don't hold any grudges towards anyone, so ask them what they do.
On July 10, 2023, the Political Parties Disputes Tribunal (PPDT) upheld the decision of the party's National Executive Committee to suspend Jeremiah Kioni, David Murathe, and Kagwe Gichohi. Kanini Kega was subsequently named the new Jubilee Secretary General.
The tribunal also invalidated the judgments made at the conference called by the Kioni group and attended by the former Head of State while upholding the ones made by the Kanini Kega faction to impose discipline on disloyal party members.
The Kega group then said it would make party leadership changes, with Sabina Chege to succeed Uhuru.
However, the High Court on July 13 temporarily suspended the PPDT's leadership of the Jubilee Party decision.
This happened after the side headed by Jeremiah Kioni appealed the ruling to the High Court's Civil Division, claiming that the tribunal members had treated them gravely and violated their constitutionally protected right to a fair trial.
