Blow to Kingi, Mutua as Registrar Declines Their Applications to Withdraw From Azimio

Sunday, May 1, 2022 –Applications made by two governors, Amason Kingi and Dr. Alfred Mutua, to ditch Azimio-One Kenya coalition have been rejected.

The office of the Registrar of Political Parties today dealt a major blow to the two party leaders – Dr. Alfred Mutua(Maendeleo Chap Chap) and  Kingi of Pamoja African Alliance PAA) who had sought to withdraw from Raila Odinga-led Azimio umbrella, citing lack of transparency.

Registrar Anne Nderitu, while responding to their plea today Saturday April 31, noted that it was not going to be easy to leave unless they fulfill certain withdrawal conditions set in their Azimio coalition documents deposited with her offices.

“Azimio is already a registered coalition political party in terms of Section 7(7) of the Political Parties Act, 2011 and the Political Parties (Registration) Regulation, 2019, hence the Registrar has no mandate to sanction the withdrawal as per your request, save for where due process outlined in the coalition agreement has been followed,” partly read the Anne Nderitu response.

In the document signed by the fringe parties, it is stated that no partner can be allowed to leave the coalition unless it is atleast six months before the August 9 General Elections.

The agreement outlines that any Azimio coalition member who wants to quit can only be competent to do so at least three months after the elections.

“No party may withdraw from the coalition six months before the August 2022 General Election or within three months after the date of the said General Election,” the agreement states in Article 22 under the heading ‘Withdrawal of Parties’.

Moreover, any party intending to leave should tender a 90-days Notice in written form to the recently constituted Azimio Coalition Council.

Kingi and Mutua now seem to have been left at a tight corner of exiting the coalition despite having claimed that they had already notified the registrar of their intentions to change loyalty.

Now whether they read this agreement before signing or not is the question they can themselves answer since Kalonzo is on record saying some party leaders did not understand what they were signing.

Governor Mutua, on his part, recently also mentioned that they were only allowed access only the last page which was asking for their signatures.