Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta is moving to reassert control of his ruling Jubilee Party by purging the parliamentary leadership of rebels who have threatened to derail his legacy, succession and post-pandemic economic recovery agenda.

The purge started last week on Monday with the ousting of Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen and Chief Whip Susan Kihika at a controversial parliamentary group meeting chaired by President Kenyatta at State House, Nairobi.

The two belong to a faction in the ruling party that is loyal to Deputy President William Ruto, who has found himself increasingly sidelined within government.

Like President Kenyatta, they also hail from central Kenya region, which together with DP Ruto’s Rift Valley have emerged as the epicentre of political agitation against the president.

A number of Members of Parliament and Members of the County Assembly allied to DP Ruto visited Kariobangi and launched a scathing attack on the president, defying the government’s current social distancing rules.