As the president-elect Uhuru Kenyatta celebrates his value-added Easter, he has a gigantic task ahead of him of forming a new government in Kenya. His will be a slim government restricted by the New Constitution comprising between 14 and 22 ministries.
Political economists would prefer a slim cabinet of only 18 ministries. A bloated cabinet of 22 will only be necessary if Uhuru wants to fall in the old corrupt practice of pleasing partisan buddies and retrogressive parochial ethnic balancing.
With a devolved system of government, Uhuru does not need to exercise political patronage that demands top heavy executive operating from Nairobi. The new president must demonstrate that the presidency no longer offers the State House tenant or his community their presumed turn to eat.
The Uhuru presidency is fortunate because, along with his deputy president, they come from the two communities that have hosted the presidency since independence in 1963. Now is not their turn to eat but to develop and build a united Kenya where resources and opportunities are equitably shared.
To achieve that Uhuru must tread very carefully and avoid political patronage or persuasions that could tarnish his presidency and create logjams that can slow down the economic growth promised in The National Alliance (TNA) manifesto. He must avoid potential stumbling blocks like the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Amolo Oginga Odinga.
Many people are offering Uhuru all nature of unsolicited advice on how his government should be and why he should avoid Raila like plague. One of those people is a man who has been in the State House and the government longest with a stint of 24 uninterrupted years as President. That man is Daniel arap Moi.
Nyayo advice would be as follows:
Moi: Gijana wangu, (My young man) congratulations. I knew you would make it. That is what I wanted in 2003 but I was sabotaged by Raila. You know that man is dangerous. You remember what he did in 1982.”
Uhuru: I was young, only 20 years.
Moi: Yes he wanted to ruin your future and that of Kenya in a military coup. Thousands of young people like you lost their lives in the abortive coup. The national economy suffered millions of shillings and some businesses were devastated by looting.
That man forced me to detain him twice. He gave me more problems than his father. But, I have a big heart and you can remember when he came to me in 2002 with a brief case full of NDP MPs, I accepted him. I even made him Kanu Secretary General but he later ran away with our documents from KICC.
Uhuru: Oh yes that I remember.
Moi: I had already told Kenyans that my vice president George Saitoti, God bless his soul, was not fit to succeed me. You know the opposition had united behind Kibaki and not Raila so he chose to come to me hoping to succeed me. You remember what Raila did when I announced you were best suited to succeed me.
If Raila had supported you in 2003 and you appointed him your vice president, he could now be in State House after your ten years. He is too ambitious running nowhere.
He is a constant source of trouble. Watch out and keep him at an arm’s length. He spends a lot of energy in the wrong directions. Ask Kibaki what he went through with Raila in the last ten years.
Lagini nashukuru (but I am grateful) God is fulfilling my prophesy that Kanu will rule Kenya for 100 years. With you taking over Kanu will have clocked 60 years in 2023 after your ten years.
Uhuru may not wait for long before Kibaki invites him to State House for a heart-to-heart chat whose main subject will inevitably be Raila.
Uhuru addressing masses during the recent campaigns
The highlights of Kibaki's advice could be as follows:
Kibaki: Mwanake (young man) I was sure you would succeed me way back when I appointed you to the important ministry of finance and made you Deputy Prime Minister in the coalition government. Congratulations.
Now that you will be here in a matter of days, please do Kenya and her citizens a favour. Keep Raila as far away from your government as you can. That man has given me hell. He made my ten years a nightmare for no practical purpose – bure sana!
Uhuru: Tigana nake (leave him alone).
Kibaki: Not me you are the one who should leave him alone. In 2003, you surprised Kenyans when you conceded defeat allowing a smooth transition from Moi. But you saw some rowdy youths throwing mud towards Moi and Raila said nothing as I sat on the wheel chair recovering from that awful Machakos accident.
You heard him talk about Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). In my position, what MoU could I have signed with Raila and why make it secret?
He wanted to be my vice president, as a matter of fact they wanted two unconstitutional vice presidencies, but I am not just an economist, I learned valuable politics on the job after leaving Makerere, from both your father and Moi. A country is governed through its Constitution.
You remember he dragged you into the Orange Movement to defeat the 2005 draft constitution.
Uhuru: Bwana President that constitution was not good. Wako had completely messed up the BomasWanjiku draft.
Kibaki: Anyway that is water gone down the bridge and I sacked them all because I realized they were up to no good in my government. That is when they transformed the Orange Movement to a political party they called ODM where Raila and Kalonzo could not agree as we approached the 2007 elections.
However, my worst experience was early 2008 when I won the elections. Ndio nilishinda! (yes I won). Honestly I did not believe any leader could plan, organize and actually unleash such atrocities and economic destruction upon his fellow citizens and motherland that I saw. Even when the intelligence told me of the planned chaos and the carnage unleashed, I couldn’t believe it. I was not prepared for such a thing. Never.
Uhuru: But Sir, you even took no action. Mungiki saved the situation a whole three weeks as Kenyans died in the hands of arsonist militias.
Kibaki: Again that is water gone down the bridge. The engineers of the chaos achieved what they wanted when we formed the Grand Coalition and changed the Constitution to accommodate Raila as unelected Prime Minister.
We also overburdened this country with a bloated cabinet of 42 and greedy MPs whose primary duty was to increase their salaries and allowances. Real shame. Bure kabisa.
Above all we suffered huge economic setbacks and spent enormous amounts of money on IDPs that could have gone to socio-economic development. You are inheriting the reconstruction bill running into billions.
Of my concern is that even as Prime Minister, he was constant source of problems for the coalition. You remember him repeatedly complaining publicly about “half-bread government”, mkeka nusu (half carpet) and lack of toilet in public dais – some petty matters that he could order done without much fanfare.
Even as the principals, we never worked in unison. Never. Raila always begrudged my presidency. When he was not doing it through his office, he would be telling Kenyans that his “victory was stolen”. Even in the last campaigns he was telling rallies that he could not deliver because he had a half-bread yet he never gave examples of projects he wanted implemented that the coalition government turned down.
You also read that he told the London Times newspaper that I was only comfortable with Kikuyus around me and there will be chaos if he is not elected on March 4. Watch out.
Keep that man at a safe distance if you want to develop Kenya and don’t take Kenyans for a ride.Niakoragwo na kamuri (he is a problem for no good reason).
Always remember that Kenya can no longer be governed the way your father, Moi or even myself did.Maundu ni macenjetio ni gatiba njeru thirikari ni ya andu (The New Constitution has changed the style of governance in Kenya, the country’s sovereignty belongs to the governed not the governing class.
Parting shot:
Ndiakagwa na yawakini. Kikuyu proverb - You don’t build your home according to your neighbours.Thii ugake thirikari yaku. Go and build your government.
It is up to Uhuru to decide what value or problems Raila would add to his government. Of course there are jobs he can give him like the chairmanship of the Cotton Lint and Seed Marketing Board once held by his father. Like father like son.
When Raila tells the world that the last elections were predetermined he is betraying his political acumen and intelligence. Why would he have participated in a predetermined election? Saying there will be voter apathy in 2018 is an admission that he has become a liability to the Luo community and Kenyans at large.
According to Raila's sister and Kisumu deputy governor Ruth, fatigued Luo voters sold their IDs rather than vote for him. Time is ripe for the Luo community to fish for a new leader acceptable to them and other Kenyans.
www.kenyaconfidential.com
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