By Eunice Omollo
In Kenya’s 2022 general election, the race for Westlands constituency in Nairobi has attracted ten contestants. One is the incumbent, Tim Wanyonyi, who represents the Orange Democratic Movement party.
The other is Nelson Havi, a former president of the Law Society of Kenya, who is representing the United Democratic Alliance. On 26 July 2022, Havi appeared on Spice FM and Vybez Radio. Both radio stations are owned by the Standard Media Group.
After the stint at Vybez Radio, Havi appeared in a video tweeted by the Standard Media Group, wearing a white cap while dancing to reggae music. The cap bore the signature “R” attributed to Raila Odinga.
Odinga is the presidential candidate of the Azimio la Umoja coalition, which has sponsored his rival, Tim Wanyoyi. William Ruto, Kenya’s deputy president, is the presidential candidate of Havi’s party, the United Democratic Alliance. Odinga and Ruto are the frontrunners in the presidential election.
Twitter users were quick to notice the political headgear. Tusiweke siasa kwa moyo. Is it true that Nelson Havi has decamped to Azimio? In this video, he is seen donning an Azimio cap while dancing to reggae,” tweeted one user. “BREAKING NEWS. Nelson Havi joins Azimio la umoja ❤❤❤❤!” declared another user.
Havi later posted a picture of himself in the white cap, which had three letters added after the “R” to spell “Ruto”. The caption read: “It is a done deal.” The KEG Fact-checking desk asked Havi if he had switched parties. He replied:
“I believe we all studied literature in high school, there is something like satire and drama, right? How does one defect from his party at this critical last lap? I am still in UDA and not in Azimio . I am first a lawyer then a politician ,whatever I did was satirical nothing more than that. Elections are not the end of life. I can crack jokes about it. Elections are not a fight, it has its light moments.”
Havi did wear a white cap with “R” on it, but he’s not leaving the United Democratic Alliance.
