The just concluded general election has rightfully secured its place in the annals of history; not only for being the very first election under the new constitutional dispensation but also as the most hotly contested but largely peaceful in recent history.
The fat lady has finally had her moment of fame and the country is now entering the penultimate stage of the election process. The writing was however on the wall right from the beginning.
It was clear that this was going to be a bruising battle, a battle that was bound to leave political fatalities in its wake. Despite a crowded race pitting eight Kenyans, it was rather obvious that the battle was between the Prime Minister Raila Odinga and his deputy, the much younger Uhuru Kenyatta
Raila Odinga has been variously described as a master politician, a modern day Kenyan political Houdini of sorts. The master politician however met his match on March 4.
He fell to a team of young, energetic, ‘ruthlessly’ dedicated and very motivated men and women. The real engine that drove the Jubilee campaign. A classic case of a ‘David versus Goliath’.
In fact, I can’t help drawing similarities with a story that is told of the real Houdini. Houdini was a master magician as well as a fabulous locksmith (a person skilled in creating as well as opening any lock).
He not only boasted but also proved that he could escape from any jail cell in the world in less than an hour, provided he could go into the cell dressed in street clothes. Soon, Houdini became very famous.
A small town in the British Isles had built a new jail they were extremely proud of. They issued Houdini a challenge. "Come, give us a try", they said. Houdini loved the publicity and the money that came with it, so he accepted.
The day of the challenge came. By the time Houdini arrived, excitement was at a fever pitch. Houdini rode triumphantly into town and walked into the cell.
He proudly walked into the cell and the big iron door was closed. Houdini took off his coat and went to work. Secreted in his belt was a flexible, tough and durable ten inch piece of steel which he used to work on the lock.
At the end of 15 minutes his confident expression had disappeared. At the end of 30 minutes he was looking confused. At the end of an hour he was drenched in perspiration.
After two hours Houdini literally collapsed against the door - which opened! Yes, it had never been locked. Except in his mind, where he viewed it as firmly locked as if a thousand locksmiths had put their best efforts into making the lock for it. One little push and Houdini could have easily opened the door. But he didn't.
Similarly, the various pollsters and there sensational poll results conducted every other week had served to condition the minds of the Cord Coalition team to the extent that for the most part they had become complacent in their perceived front-runner position.
In the background, their main opponent was busy burning the midnight oil quite literally; studying voting trends and coming up with a clever yet simple plan to deliver the elusive first –round victory.
Indeed, when the much vilified, as well as celebrated in equal measure, Mutahi Ngunyi released his well thought out ‘tyranny of numbers’ theory, he was the subject of insults and jabs from all quarters.
His theory was however not lost to the objective. What his accusers did not appreciate - much to their chagrin - is that the electoral process begins at the voter registration stage.
It is also common knowledge that a majority of the people that thronged Cord Coalition campaign rallies in its strongholds were not registered as voters. All the pomp and colour at these rallies amounted to just that, pomp; the missing link was the translation of the huge turnout into actual votes.
Furthermore, a quick and objective comparison of Raila Odinga’s last two presidential bids will easily reveal that the latest bid was a far cry from the well oiled and coordinated campaign of 2007.
His 2013 bid was characterised by numerous dysfunctional lobby groups conceived and killed almost at inception such asSibanduki, Fora and Cord Effect. Needless to say it was bereft of energy and focus.
Conversely, the well executed plan crafted by the Jubilee team matured on March 4 when millions of registered voters trooped to various polling stations to cast their votes. When it was all said and done, the final tally betrayed the unassailable lead cobbled up by the President-elect Uhuru.
As the counsel for the chairman of the IEBC at the petition before the Supreme Court rightly noted, Raila has never failed to cry foul in any presidential election he has participated in.
This is a fact! This instance was not any different; as the reality sunk a well calculated onslaught against the IEBC’s conduct of the election was kicked into action by the Cord.
This time round however, the Judiciary was ready. Recently constituted and infused with energetic leadership together with public goodwill and support.
Armed with their ‘mountain’ of evidence, the Cord trooped to the Supreme Court, the Constitution of Kenya as their shield and spear spoiling for a fight, and a fight they got!
The entire country was entranced by the titanic battle before the Supreme Court; beamed all across the country and the world live. The bench was as much as possible a fair representation of the various people of Kenya, a product of the new constitutional dispensation no doubt.
A weeklong display of legal jargon, theatrics, strategy, sound arguments and submissions by able counsels was dished out in equal measure in various living rooms, offices and other areas.
The Supreme Court wasted no time in delivering its verdict, the constitutional time constraints wouldn’t afford the judges that luxury. Ten minutes is how long the Chief Justice took to read the unanimous decision, and with that the final nail was hammered in. End of an era perhaps, or an opportunity to rise from the ashes like the proverbial phoenix? It remains to be seen.
What is clear however is that the IEBC was vindicated, its chairman’s declaration of the Uhuru as the validly elected President of Kenya has been upheld. In fact, the President-elect has won the election with a bigger margin than had been initially declared.
The Supreme Court decision was by and large in consonance with a number of similar petitions in Nigeria, Uganda, Zambia and Philippines. In the unlikely event that the court had decided otherwise, it would have been the first court in the world to overturn a presidential election that had received widespread approval from a majority of the independent international observer missions.
The precedent-setting detailed judgment of the Supreme Court is awaited anxiously as its effect will reverberate across the legal corridors both locally and internationally.
Now that today is the designated date for inauguration and swearing in of the President-elect, it must not be lost on Kenya that it heralds a new dispensation.
The dispensation of the ‘Uhuru’ generation, a generation that has no umbilical cord with the pre-independence dispensation. It promises the country new energy and thinking which it has yearned for since independence.
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