Days after President Uhuru Kenyatta fired a veiled shot at his Deputy William Ruto for questioning his truce with opposition boss Raila Odinga, Ruto's allies have reacted to the shot.
Speaking in Nairobi on Wednesday, in an event attended by Raila, Uhuru reprimanded Jubilee Party leaders accusing Raila of using their 2018 truce to weaken the ruling party.
This has been seen as a direct salvo at the DP who has been very uncomfortable with Raila's closeness to the president, ahead of their (Ruto and Raila) possible faceoff in the 2022 polls.
But Soy MP and Ruto ally Caleb Kositany now says that thought the DP is not interested in responding to the President, but will instead carry on with his operations.
He said that Ruto's team still believes in the President and his agenda, and will not be offended by his remarks.
“The DP will move on with his political strategy as it were, and that is to serve the people of Kenya. We still believe that the president was and still is genuine over the handshake, but Mr Odinga had bad intentions over the handshake. He was not genuine," he told the Sunday Nation.
Kositany said that Uhuru is most likely acting out of knowledge, and might not have detected that Raila is hiding a card under the table yet, as he attempts to frustrate the DP.
He cited recent remarks from Raila's ally and Siaya Senator James Orengo that the party would impeach the DP, which he said is a clear indication that Raila is after Ruto's fall.
“The President may have wondered how Mr Odinga is dividing Jubilee, but then again the words and actions of his key lieutenants show that the handshake, as they understood it, was a plot to weaken the DP," he added.
Ruto had also repeatedly raised alarm, and cautioned Raila that his plans to either break the party or chase him (Ruto) out of Jubilee will not bear any results.
Raila has however insisted that he remains the opposition boss and has nothing to do with Jubilee matters, urging Ruto to raise his concerns with the President.