A public row between Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro and Nyandarua Senator John Methu over money for the July 16 Ol Kalou by-election has spilled into the open. On Wednesday, Jubilee's Jeremiah Kioni stepped in, warning that the feud could damage the united opposition's chances in 2027.

Two accounts of the same money

Speaking at a People's Party of Kenya (PPK) delegates meeting on Tuesday, October 27, Nyoro said Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) leader Rigathi Gachagua had asked him to help fund the Ol Kalou campaign. Nyoro now leads the PPK. He said he gave half the money to Methu and sent the other half to Gachagua through his personal assistant.

"Gachagua called me, and Methu came to my office. I gave him half of the money for the Ol Kalou campaigns, then gave the other half to Wamumbi, Rigathi's PA. If you bought a new car, ask yourselves within your party," Nyoro said.

In a television interview on October 25, Methu, the DCP secretary general, said he did receive money from Nyoro but called it a personal soft loan, not campaign funding. He said he borrowed it to replace a vehicle that had broken down during the campaign. Methu also said he had sold a 17-acre plot in Ol Kalou, which he valued at Sh17 million, to pay for the campaign. He said Gachagua told him Nyoro had not given him any campaign money.

Neither man's version has been independently verified.

Mole claims

The money dispute is part of a wider quarrel. DCP officials have accused Nyoro, who left UDA earlier this year, of secretly working with the government to weaken the opposition from within. Methu has claimed Nyoro was paid to register a party that would compete with DCP in Mount Kenya. Nyoro denies this and says his move to PPK has nothing to do with chasing influence in the region.

Kioni: 'Let bygones be bygones'

In a statement on Wednesday, October 28, Jubilee deputy party leader Jeremiah Kioni asked the two leaders to stop attacking each other in public. He said Kenyans expect the opposition to present a credible candidate against President William Ruto.

"We cannot afford to spend our energy fighting one another when the challenges before our people demand that we stand together," Kioni said.

He compared the row to the Tangatanga-Kieleweke split before the 2022 election, which he said distracted Mount Kenya leaders from the bigger picture. "We must not make the same mistake again," he said.

"There will always be differences, and there will always be another day to settle political scores. But this moment calls for maturity, restraint and unity. Let bygones be bygones," Kioni added.

The appeal comes as opposition principals meet at Gachagua's Wamunyoro home to try to agree on one presidential flagbearer.

Photos: Kenyans.co.ke (Ndindi Nyoro); People Daily (Jeremiah Kioni/X). Thumbnail design: HAMASTA MEDIA.