President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Mombasa governor aspirant Suleiman Shahbal at a past event. [Photo: Suleiman Shahbal/ facebook.com]
With President Uhuru Kenyatta readying himself for the repeat presidential election slated for October 17, his campaign machinery is keen to raid Raila Odinga's Mombasa political turf.
Keen to add onto his tally of over 99,000 votes that he garnered in Mombasa during the August 8 polls, Uhuru's campaign team in the coastal county is already taking shape.However, despite mounting a spirited effort to beat Raila in a region which he has reigned politically for over a decade now, Uhuru's campaign team is facing some internal strife which played out in front of Deputy President William Ruto on Friday.Suleiman Shahbal who lost to Governor Hassan Joho in the gubernatorial race managed to deliver close to 100,000 votes to the Jubilee presidential candidate during the August 8 polls. However, politicians allied to Jubilee in the county are not comfortable with his leadership and want him out.Often accused of being a polarizing figure in the Jubilee leadership in the county, Shahbal's checkered political career was laid bare on Friday when he was shouted down by the party supporters who want him replaced by Tourism Minister Najib Balala, who is part of the Uhuru campaign team in Mombasa.Uhuru and the Jubilee leadership should bring to an end the constant wrangling in the county ahead of next month's contest, to avoid handicapping his re-election bid.Should the acrimony between the Balala and Shahbal factions continue, his hope for a much better tally this time around may end up becoming a mirage.