Nandi Hills Member of Parliament Alfred Keter has formally resigned from the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) party.
The resignation came just hours after Political Parties Disputes Tribunal declined to overturn a decision by UDA to deny him a nomination certificate.
Keter had won the Nandi Hills MP nomination, beating his main rival Bernard Kitur by over 2,500 votes, but the party’s Elections and Nominations Dispute Resolution Committee nullified the win citing irregularities.
This is after Kitur challenged the MP’s win, and would later be handed the certificate.
Keter moved to the tribunal which ruled against him, affirming the decision by UDA.
And after the verdict that means Kitur will be flying the UDA flag in Nandi Hills, Keter said he was no longer a member of any party.
He shared a letter received by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) confirming that he will vying for the seat as an independent.
“From today Thursday the 28th day of April 2022, I am no longer a member of any political party. I wish to confirm to you that I am officially an Independent Candidate,” he said in a post on his official Facebook page.
The MP added that, “May the will of the people of Nandi Hills Constituency prevail on 9th August, 2022.”
Keter had for the better part of his second term on the opposing side of Deputy President William Ruto, and would only reconcile with him a few months to the UDA nominations.
Some close allies of the vocal MP were openly opposed to his bid to vie using UDA ticket and campaigned against him ahead of the April 19, 2022 nomination.
He would surprisingly go ahead and win the ticket, before the results were controversially annulled.
He will now have to defend his seat as an independent candidate.
The MP has served the people of Nandi Hills since 2013 when he was first elected on a United Republican Party (URP) ticket.
He won re-election against Kitur in 2017 on a Jubilee ticket.
