Ruto Reduces List Of 15 Nominees For EALA To Five

President William Ruto's United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party has dropped 10 nominees for membership in the East African Legislative Assembly (EALA).

The list was reduced through a secret vote within the party during its Parliamentary Group meeting at State House, Nairobi on Wednesday, November 16.

"It's up to you to select those who will be MPs of the East African Legislative Assembly," the president promised in terms of ensuring that the UDA MPs vote secretly without being coerced to pick them.

From the initial list of 15, only five survived the drop and they include former Mombasa UDA gubernatorial aspirant Hassan Omar and former nominated MP David Ole Sankok.

Former Nominated MP, David Sankok. /FILE

Others included Zipporah Kering, Fred Muteti and Falhada Dekow Iman.

The initial shortlist featured Rebecca Merikeju Lowoiya, Godfrey Maina Karobia, Joel Okengo Nyambane, Dr Abdikadir Omar Aden and Anne Too.

Others included Jonas Misto V. Kuko, Cyprian Kubai Iringo, Lilian Cheptoo Tomitom, Yasser Ali Sheikh Bajaber, and Salim Mohammed Busidy.

The nominees will be presented to Parliament for vetting and approval on their suitability for the EALA slots before the joint Committee on the election of the EALA.

The major political parties in parliament will then nominate their respective nominees for the nine available slots for Kenya in the Arusha-based Assembly. 

Kenya has nine seats in the East African Legislative Assembly. Five of the nine will go to the Kenya Kwanza coalition while four will go to the Azimio la Umoja coalition, meaning the six nominated by ODM face intense competition from affiliate party members in the race to determine who will compose the final four to make it to the assembly.

Independent candidates are also allowed to contest the regional seats before a final verdict is made through a secret ballot. The tenure of the current EALA members is set to expire on December 17, 2022.

Former Baringo Senator Gideon Moi, who unsuccessfully vied for the Baringo Senatorial race, had pulled out of the EALA race to allow other legislators to be nominated by Azimio la Umoja.

Moi was nominated for the position alongside former Prime Minister Raila Odinga's daughter Winnie Odinga, former Mombasa gubernatorial aspirant Suleiman Shahbal and former Shinyalu MP Justus Kizito.

Others who were featured in the list released by Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) on Wednesday, November 9, included former Kitutu Masaba MP Timothy Bosire and Former Turkana Water and Irrigation CEC Beatrice Askul.