By Anderson Ojwang Doublespeak
In the last five months, President William Ruto has made two strategic political moves that have exposed the depth of doublespeak in the country.
President Ruto’s moves have exposed the deep-seated jealousy, rivalry and political conniving that have ruled the country for the last six decades.
Picture two strategic scenes President Ruto pulled in his turbulent political moment, to rescue his boat from capsizing.
The first scene President Ruto extends a handshake to Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga and the move thaws away the surging Gen Zee demonstrations that had threatened to bring down his regime.
From the handshake, President Ruto and Raila agreed to form a broad-based government. The move subsequently, resulted in top Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leadership joining the high table.
They included ODM National chairman John Mbadi who was made Treasury and Economic Planning, the first person from Nyanza to hold the post after independence.
The two deputy party leaders namely Hassan Joho and Wycliff Oparanya and Parliamentary Account Committee (Pac) Chairman Opiyo Wandayi were all rewarded with the cabinet slots.
Equally, President Ruto agreed to support Raila’s quest for the chair of the African Union (AU) and has been on a campaign trail to whip votes for the latter.
The Government is also sponsoring Raila’s candidature with Prime Secretary Musalia Mudavadi mandated by the President to lead the campaigns.
The formation of the broad-based government and the bromance between President Ruto and Raila have been criticized mainly by the political class from Mt Kenya who viewed it as a betrayal by the latter and chastised him for supporting the former.
After talks with Ruto, Raila claimed that former President Uhuru Kenyatta calmed tensions for the Kenya Kwanza administration by advising him to have a sit-down with President William Ruto.
Thus assertion drew criticism from Mt Kenya leaders who claimed Raila had betrayed them and was using Uhuru’s name to blackmail them. Former Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui cautioned that Uhuru would only advocate for well-structured talks.
“Although I do not speak for Uhuru Kenyatta, for the country to descend to anarchy would be a cause for major concern. However, power sharing without a long-term commitment to resolve matters raised by Gen Zs is suicidal.”
Former Bahati MP Kimani Ngunjiri said Raila had invoked the name of the former president to gain the confidence of the Mt Kenya people, who are accusing him of betraying their cause.
Ngunjiri said Raila had exposed himself as a leader who could not be trusted as he had given several conflicting accounts of what transpired before he accepted to work with President Ruto.
“He initially said the four ODM leaders who were given Cabinet Secretary posts went to work with the government on their own. He told us that President Ruto had begged him to help him stabilize the country following the challenges brought about by the demonstrators, only to fabricate another new story,” said Ngunjiri.
In scene two, President Ruto recently visited his predecessor and immediate former President Uhuru Kenyatta at his Ichaweri home in Gatundu.
The two leaders held a consultative meeting on national matters with speculations on the air over the possible inclusion of Uhuru allies in the broad-based government.
But the political class and the public from Mt Kenya have gone mute on the meeting and it has not stirred any political storm.
If anything, it has been welcomed by the Agikuyu elders as a positive move.
The storm and criticism that marked Ruto and Raila’s handshake and subsequent formation of a Broad-based government were not replayed and replicated in scene two.
The Agikuyu elders welcomed that the meeting would help bring peace and that it was important for the two leaders to meet.
“We welcome the gesture of the two leaders as it will help bring peace and stabilize the economy. As Agikuyu elders we encourage such consultations,” they said in a recent press
statement.
And this begs the big question, when will the Murima accept the lake moving to the King’s table to preside over the cake distribution?
Political Commentator Mwalimu Odoyo Owidi said this double-speak didn’t start today but is historical and has been part and parcel of Mt Kenya region in the distribution of the national cake.
“Historically, Mt Kenya has been behaving so. Whenever the lake gets or sits closer to the cake, they feel agitated and will demonize any move to that end,” he said.
He said Mt Kenya wholeheartedly supported the handshake between President Uhuru and Raila and wondered why they have been against the broad-based government.
“In the last general elections, they had two choices, Ruto and Raila. They saw Ruto as a lesser devil and what is wrong with the main devil joining the lesser one? Let them eat their cake,” he said.
Odoyo said it was time Mt Kenya accepted equitable sharing of the national cake for the sake of peaceful co-existence.
Political analyst Michael Agwanda said there is an inherent fear by Mt Kenya about the lake assuming leadership and that is why they have remained critical of moves that bring the community near national leadership.
“The mistrust between the two communities usually plays out and more so when the lake gets closer to the cake when the Murima is not in the driving seat. They want the lake confined to the
periphery,” argued.
