Michael Mundia Kamau P

Michael Mundia Kamau P.O. Box 58972 00200 City Square Nairobi Kenya 19th June 2004 KENYA “B” The leader of the official opposition in Kenya, Uhuru Kenyatta, made a hero’s entry into the joint-ruling Liberal Democratic Party stronghold of Kisumu city on 18th June 2004, in a manner that his father would have wished and envied 35 years ago. In this respect Uhuru Kenyatta has accomplished a feat that his father was not able to, in the same way that John F. Kennedy’s ascendency to the American presidency fulfilled unfinished business for his father Ambassador Joseph Kennedy. Uhuru’s triumphant Kisumu entry is however taking place at a time of great political, economic and social turmoil and instability in Kenya, which significantly lessens it’s impact and significance. Uhuru brought no new message of renewed hope and merely stirred emotion through cheap anti-government propaganda and the announcement of the possible formation of an alliance between his party KANU and Raila Odinga’s Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). The likely formation of a political alliance between LDP and KANU is nothing new to Kenya, and there have been several such failed ventures in Kenya’s history over the past 12 years. The opposition Forum for the Restoration of Democracy (FORD), formally registered in 1992, initially split into FORD-Agip and FORD-Muthithi, from which was to later emerge FORD-Kenya and FORD-Asili, respectively. After the opposition’s loss to KANU at the 1992 elections, the stalled United Democratic Movement (UDM) was formed in 1994 to counter KANU. UDM was a lose coalition of then opposition parties like FORD-Asili, FORD-Kenya and the Democratic Party (DP). Around this period former FORD-Asili leader, Kenneth Matiba formed the still unregistered Saba Saba Asili party and joined ranks with former Gatundu MP, Ngengi Muigai. Kenneth Matiba also formed a short-lived political alliance with current “de facto” LDP leader, Raila Odinga, at the time. Raila Odinga fell out with FORD-Kenya in 1997 and formed the National Development Party (NDP). KANU and NDP formed a political alliance after the 1997 general elections that was to culminate in the March 2002 merger of both parties and the emergence of “New KANU”. Mwai Kibaki’s Democratic Party, Michael Kijana Wamalwa’s FORD-Kenya and Charity Ngiliu’s Social Democratic Party had meanwhile formed themselves into an opposition political alliance known as the National Alliance of Parties of Kenya (NAK). Raila Odinga’s former NDP and a faction of KANU, rebelled against former President Daniel arap Moi’s choice of Uhuru as KANU’s presidential candidate at the 2002 general elections, broke off from KANU, and joined NAK to form the current ruling alliance of the National Rainbow Coalition (NARC). It is becoming increasingly apparent that former President Daniel arap Moi pulled off one of the most shrewdest political decoys of all time by his support of the stalled Project Uhuru in 2002, much the same way that the Americans pulled off a major military decoy prior to the 1991 Gulf war by publishing detailed accounts of an planned amphibian attack in Newsweek magazine. Moi ensured his smooth exit from power and fully knew that his legacy would soon be redeemed by the almost certain comical performance of the incoming government. He knew very well the characters of the men and women vying for government, having worked closely with them for several years, and knew that they would soon be exposed as reckless and irresponsible self-seekers. It is a bit much to set aside Moi’s vast experience and exposure, and assume that he did not know what he was doing. The power struggles in NARC are becoming more intense, more brutal, more bold and more reckless. In an unprecedented move, First lady Lucy Kibaki joined the fray in the week of 13th June 2004 by lashing out at LDP rebels in NARC. It is difficult to tell what turn events will take, though what’s certain is that the entire Kenyan leadership is doing this country great injustice and great disservice. Uhuru Kenyatta is building alliances with ruling party rebels before putting his own affairs in order. He lost credibility by not being elected chairman of the parliamentary Public Accounts Committee (PAC), a key position traditionally reserved for the head of the official opposition. Uhuru Kenyatta has failed to reinvigorate vanquished KANU by giving it a new lease of life. The party is down and this is the most appropriate time to make key and painful changes to the party, in readiness for the future. The themes of Uhuru Kenyatta’s political rallies continue to revolve around attacks on the government’s lack of delivery. There is however little to suggest that Uhuru has the will, character or ability to mobilise support and apply sustained pressure on the government to deliver. This is what built the career of current British premier, Tony Blair. If Uhuru Kenyatta was not able to do this with his PAC candidacy, it is difficult to see how he will be able to mobilise the support of an entire nation. Rather than continue preaching about several ills of the current leadership, Uhuru Kenyatta should rectify them. He should use his key political position to safeguard the interests of the nation. Uhuru Kenyatta has not for instance used his position to apply pressure on the Minister of Transport and Communications to decree a reduction of fares even though there was a definite government pledge to do so. His Gatundu South constituents are affected by the fare hikes in equal proportion to the rest of the nation.

Uhuru Kenyatta has not brought meaningful pressure to bear on the government regarding high level corruption such as the unprocedural award of huge government contracts to the little known Anglo Leasing trading company. Uhuru Kenyatta has not made his presence felt on numerous other issues in the country such as unemployment, rising crime nationwide including his own Gatundu South constituency, poverty and health. A figurative official opposition head is as bad as no official opposition head at all. Former Ugenya MP James Orengo, almost brought down the Moi government by moving a vote of no confidence in parliament. Ever since Ronald Ngala levelled harsh criticism in parliament against Mzee Kenyatta and his government in Kenyatta’s presence, Kenyan presidents have never attended parliament for routine parliamentary business, but in an extemely rare gesture, Moi attended parliament on the day of Orengo’s near successful vote. James Orengo did not occupy the enviable perch of official opposition head at the time of his near successful vote. The World Bank has just announced that it is releasing a tranche of US $ 250,000,000 development aid to Kenya and close monitoring of these funds to ensure that they are correctly utilised, provides another test for Uhuru Kenyatta. The Anglo Leasing procurement scandal however destroys all such optimism, and in it’s stead hangs a dark cloud of pessimism and despair. When Uhuru Kenyatta was the Chairman of the Kenya Tourist Board (KTB), he featured on the Kenya Television Network’s “Breakfast Show”, articulating KTB efforts to improve Kenyan domestic and international tourism. Amongst the things that Uhuru mentioned was the formulation of budget domestic tourist packages to cater for the “wananchi” (common man). Uhuru used the word “wananchi” in his delivery, probably unaware of the vastly changed conditions of the common man in Kenya. The common man in Kenya is on the brink of madness, pushed to the edge by an unfeeling system. Uhuru Kenyatta forms part of that unfeeling system. The revered Kenyatta family residence in Ichaweri, Gatundu, remains largely unchanged from the time Uhuru’s father reigned. The posh Kenyatta family mansion off Nairobi’s Dennis Pritt road, remains largely unchanged since the time that Mzee Kenyatta reigned. The rest of Kenya has however changed drastically. Upper and lower middle class neighbourhoods have been transformed into little more than slums, as slums proper continue to emerge in every available open space. Uhuru Kenyatta may have taken a drive through Nairobi’s middle class Umoja estate as a teenager, which has now grown into a vast formless concrete maze of developed and half-developed real estate. To manoeuvre through the heart of this concrete maze one requires the skills of Kenya’s Rhino charge crews.

The difference is that Kenya’s Rhino charge is an annual weekend entertainment retreat, whereas living in Umoja is daily weekday and weekend need. The same applies to other neighbourhoods like Zimmerman and Ongata Rongai. Rural Kenya is a daily replica of the Rhino charge proper. This is a Kenya far removed from the romanticism associated with Kenya’s Coronation Avenue of the 1950s, Kenya’s Delamare Avenue of 1960s and Kenya’s Government Road of the 1970s. The rough reality associated with modern day Kenya is congestion and deprivation. If Uhuru Kenyatta wishes to equal the legacy of his father, he must go to the heart of modern day Kenya, and assess it’s needs, goals, fears and aspirations. In this respect, Uhuru Kenyatta can borrow a leaf from his cousin, Dagoretti MP, Beth Mugo. After Beth Mugo lost her bid for the Dagoretti seat to Chris Kamuyu at the 1992 general elections, she got involved in every meaningful development project in her Dagoretti constituency to the point that her name became associated with progress in Dagoretti. The 1997 general elections were therefore a walkover for her. Kenyan leaders as a whole need to wake up to the realities of a drastically changed country. The leak in the pipe has now bust and the floods are the vast numbers of people seen daily on Nairobi’s congested streets and elsewhere. It is plain to see why former President Moi actively sought opportunities for Kenyans in Namibia and elsewhere. The entire system requires radical surgery and an overhaul. The two available options for Kenyan leaders now, are to either change radically, or be bundled out in a manner that would make Moi’s bundling out look majestic. Michael Mundia Kamau