A file photo of Governor Mruttu with his supporters outside the Mombasa Law Courts. [Photo/ the-star.co.ke]
The national Super Alliance (NASA) held a rally in Voi, Taita Taveta County on Friday and conspicuously absent was Governor John Mruttu.
ODM, the party through which Mruttu was elected in 2013 has been under pressure to choose who between the county chief and Wundanyi MP Thomas Mwadeghu will fly the party’s flag for the seat of governor on August 8.Mwadeghu during ODM party nominations floored Mruttu by close to 3,000 votes to win during party primaries held in mid-April.He, during the exercise garnered 18,421 votes against Mruttu’s 15,911 in the final tally, bagging the ticket to fly ODM’s flag in the August 8 general election.Mruttu rejected results of the nomination calling for a repeat of the exercise in wards he claimed the vote was rigged in Mwadeghu’s favour.Orange House’s decision that the poll be repeated was met by protests back in Taita Taveta as residents stamped authority declaring Mwadeghu was their preferred gubernatorial candidate.When the two were summoned to Orange House Nairobi to find an “amicable solution” to the standoff, a fist fight almost broke between the law maker and the county chief over who should be presented with the party certificate.Mruttu, a close ally of NASA leader Raila Odinga, since then, has maintained a low profile making a handful of public appearances.Apart from Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho and Kilifi’s Amason Kingi, he remains one of opposition’s point men in Coast region following the departure of Kwale Governor Salim Mvurya and Tana River’s Hussein Dado from NASA.At the Voi rally, Mwadengu received a rousing welcome from a crowd that chanted slogans in his favour.