PAA release statement on defection of members to ODM party
The Pamoja African Alliance (PAA) party has dismissed the recent defection of certain members to ODM, asserting that no official from their party has actually left, contrary to earlier suggestions.
The party’s national executive council (NEC), led by spokesperson and former Malindi MP Lucas Maitha, characterized the events as a political tactic orchestrated by ODM with the intention of undermining the progress of the PAA party.
Maitha further claimed that this maneuver by ODM is also a strategy to divert President William Ruto’s focus from delivering his agenda to the coastal population.
“Some days ago, people purporting to be party officials decamped to ODM. I want to clarify that they were not officials but former members who ran for MCA seats in the last general election and lost,” said Maitha.
“It is a first in Kenya that people decamp from a party in government and run to the opposition.”
Ahead of the 2022 general elections, the party, under the leadership of former Kilifi governor and current Senate speaker Amason Kingi, switched allegiance from the Azimio la Umoja Camp to join the Kenya Kwanza outfit led by Ruto.
Maitha emphasized that PAA remains resilient and undeterred, assuring that the party is fully prepared to confront ODM directly in the 2027 elections.
“We have numbers in Kilifi, and in the last general election, the numbers favoured President Ruto.”
“But watch this space; PAA will take over Kilifi and other counties come 2027,” Maitha said.
He questioned why ODM appeared troubled by their progress, suggesting that their concern stems from the fear that residents of the coast are no longer receptive to the ODM symbol, represented by the orange.
On the previous Thursday, Sammy Nyundo, the former youth leader of PAA, led a delegation to meet with ODM leader Raila Odinga at Chungwa House in Nairobi. During this meeting, they officially declared their departure from PAA. Nyundo claimed that their decision to leave was motivated by feeling neglected since Kingi assumed the role of Senate speaker, and they were also excluded from the decision to shift allegiance from Azimio.
In response, Maitha clarified that their choice to join Kenya Kwanza resulted from what they perceived as deceit and overpowering tactics from larger affiliate parties within the Azimio coalition, without adequate involvement of other coalition members.
“When PAA was first formed, we were working with Baba (Raila), until we were forced to sign a document at Bomas, Kenya, without even consulting our NEC members.”
“None of our NEC members, including the secretary general, the chair, or even the party leader, had seen the document and presented it to us for ratification. That’s the point we opted out of Azimio to join Kenya Kwanza,” he said.
During the Kenya Kwanza event, Maitha mentioned engaging in open dialogues regarding PAA’s objectives for the people of the Coast.
These objectives encompassed rectifying longstanding historical land injustices against the locals and the relocation of port operations back to Mombasa, among other matters.
Additionally, as part of the agreement between PAA and Kenya Kwanza, the party secured the position of the Senate Speaker following their victory in the 2022 general elections.
“We can confirm that the issues we presented are now being addressed by the government. Port operations are back in Mombasa, and the president, in his last tour of the region, announced that they had set aside funds to buy land to address the squatter issues,” Maitha said.
He went on to urge members who had defected from the party to refrain from linking Speaker Kingi with their political group. He emphasized that Speaker Kingi now holds a national leadership role in the Senate and does not align himself with any specific political party.
“Kingi is no longer the PAA party leader; we donated him to the government and he was elected senate speaker, a position that requires him to be objective.”
“We are only connected to him because he founded the party when all the governors at the Coast abandoned the quest to form a political party for our people,” he said.
Hassan Albeid, the Deputy Party Leader and Acting Leader of PAA, emphasized that whatever events unfolded would not hinder their advancement. He reiterated that their party embodies an ideology aimed at revitalizing the development and economic agenda of the region.
“We saw this coming, and we’re patiently waiting and psychologically prepared. But we want to show them (ODM) that PAA is a national party capable of producing national leaders.”
“Come 2032, we shall also field a candidate for the top seat,” Albeid said.
The PAA National Chairman, Ibrahim Hamis, also known as “Babangida,” appealed to the members to remain calm, affirming the strength of the party. He urged them not to let the current situation become a distraction, emphasizing that the party is poised to initiate a nationwide recruitment drive for new members in the near future.
“All these you are hearing ni story za jaba, our focus now is what is ailing our people. We don’t want to waste time on baseless politics,” he said.
Former Mwatate MP Calistus Mwatela echoed similar sentiments, emphasizing the need for the region to actively engage with the government to secure its equitable share of national resources.
He expressed disappointment in the prevalent trend where political parties in Kenya often revolve around individuals rather than focusing on consistent policy frameworks.
“As a PAA party, we want to continue popularizing our blueprint centred around the development of this region.”
“Our roads and infrastructure have been in bad condition for years yet we are the number one contributors of revenue. We need to start gaining from our resources and stop petty politics and fighting that will take us nowhere,” said Mwatela.
