Tension between President William Ruto's troops and those of Opposition chief Raila Odinga is threatening to degenerate into chaos ahead of the debate on the divisive tax laws.
Crucial businesses lined up in the House and efforts to revive the bipartisan talks are at the risk of being thrown off-balance.
Signs of looming trouble began on Thursday after Azimio MPs clashed with Speaker Moses Wetangula for failing to remove Nominated MP Sabina Chege as deputy minority whip.
The National Assembly session ended in disarray that saw Sabina's hand injured in the melee.
Wetangula in his ruling said his hands were tied following a court order that blocked the changes.
The opposition wants Sabina out of the plum post over her dalliance with Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza coalition.
The chaos saw seven MPs suspended for varied days following the fracas.
Millie Odhiambo (Suba North), Roza Buyu (Kisumu West), TJ Kajwang (Ruaraka) and Chege were suspended for two weeks.
Their Malindi counterpart Amina Mnyazi and Busia’s Catherine Omanyo were handed a five-day suspension.
Machakos Women Representative Joyce Kamene was suspended for two sittings.
The drama has exposed the heightening tension between the Raila and Ruto camps ahead of the debate on the Finance Bill on Tuesday.
“We are anticipating the fights to get extreme in the next three weeks,” an assembly official told the Star, saying the extreme measures would follow to maximise the safety of members.
“We are prepared. We may even not put water at the central table during the upcoming debates."
Raila has announced he has a plan to counter the proposed tax laws, both in Parliament and outside, setting the stage for a major clash.
The ODM leader has asked Ruto to withdraw the Finance Bill and focus on lowering the cost of living as a priority.
The opposition leader wants the Kenya Kwanza team to cut down the budget and live within its means.
“Instead of imposing taxes, let him seal the loopholes that lead to loss of revenue,” the opposition chief said.
The position is likely to be countered by Kenya Kwanza MPs whose bosses have been strictly instructed to pass the bill – without drastic amendments.
President Ruto and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua have both warned their troops of unspecified consequences should they defy their call for support of the tax Bill.
“There is only one member who is still stubborn. We will deal with the case but we are confident the rest of our members support the bill,” Gachagua said on Thursday.
While at the Coffee Summit in Meru on Friday, the DP alluded to a desperate team ‘that has resorted to fights instead of engaging in meaningful debate’.
But Raila’s troops hold that the problem stems from fears Speaker Wetangula is playing to the tune of the Executive.
The general feeling in Raila's camp is that the Ruto team is taking advantage of its numbers to legislate by ‘fiat and hubris’ to frustrate Azimio.
“The ruling is a demonstration of the insincerity of Kenya Kwanza even in the bipartisan talks,” Minority Leader Opiyo Wandayi, who is also Ugunja MP, told the Star on Friday.
He said the ruling [on Sabina tenure as deputy Minority Whip] was the “straw that broke the camel’s back” in the peace talks between Raila and Ruto sides.
“As far as the engagements are concerned, let nature takes its course. I’d advise my coalition not to participate in the talks," he said.
The minority team further argued that its members were kicked out to cut on Azimio numbers "in order to give the proposed tax laws an easy sail."
“This is a strategy by UDA to ensure they will pass the unpopular and intimating, oppressing Finance Bill,” Kisumu West MP Rozaah Buyu said.
The minority troops claimed that CBK Governor Kamau Thugge’s nomination and the Budget Committee report on 2023-24 estimates were approved without proper debate.
But Gachagua, in condemning the chaos that ensued Thursday, cast a different light on the events.
“Parliament is a place for talking. If it is about fights, why not go help us with bandits in the North Rift? All that is needed in Parliament is just a brain and a mouth. Just say what you want to say,” the DP said.
Even so, there are grumbles by MPs – largely from Azimio and a section of Kenya Kwanza, over delayed CDF.
They have threatened to frustrate Treasury Cabinet Secretary Njuguna Ndung’u budget speech next Thursday if CDF would not have been wired into the constituency accounts.
(Edited by Tabnacha O)