Why President Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto not taking Raila Odinga for granted

By PROTUS ONYANGO

KENYA: The Jubilee Government appears to be getting jittery over recent moves by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who lost to President Uhuru Kenyatta in the last elections.

The growing unease of the Jubilee team with Raila was evident last week when Deputy President William Ruto issued a terse statement asking the former PM to avoid actions that may lead to civil instability.

Among the recent moves by Raila that have raised eyebrows is his threat to have all parties under his CORD coalition boycott futures elections.

The unfolding scenario appears to validate a recent statement by political scientist Mutahi Ngunyi, who said that the Jubilee government should “deal with Raila unapologetically” because he was regrouping.

Raila recently threatened that his coalition would refuse to participate in all elections organised by the Independent Elections and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) unless it is ‘reformed’.

Jubilee functionaries have also accused Raila of being behind the teacher’s strike that lasted for close to a month. There was fear in Government that if the demands by teachers were met, all civil servants would stage copycat industrial strikes.

The former PM has also been calling for the release of the final poll results (the results were released on Thursday) by IEBC amid claims by his allies that the Issack Hassan-led commission was ‘doctoring’ the final results.

The results were tabled on Thursday but commissioners did not testify after a standoff over whether they should swear or not before being questioned by the National Assembly’s Legal Affairs Committee.

Respect him as a leader

The unease with the former PM’s activities is betrayed by the move by the police last week who summoned the former PM’s aide Eliud Owalo for questioning for alleged involvement in subversive actions to destabilise government.

The ongoing ICC trials are another reason the Jubilee government could be wary of Raila.

Officials of Uhuru’s TNA party said they respect Raila but the Jubilee government will not hesitate in countering any attempt by the former PM to block them from achieving their goals.

“We vanquished Raila and CORD in the elections. We respect him as a leader who fought for democracy. But he should not use diversionary tactics to cause instability in the country,” said TNA Secretary General Onyango Oloo.

He added that Jubilee would deal with anyone who wants to cause unnecessary tension aimed at undermining the Government.

“As a party, we want to respond to a higher calling of serving Kenyans and will deal with anyone who is out to put roadblocks in our way,” Mr Oloo said.

TNA nominated MP Johnson Sakaja, who is also the party’s chairman called on Raila and Kenyans to give Jubilee more time to fulfil its promises.

“Stole his victory”

“Raila holds a special place in our politics. He is capable of providing vibrant opposition to us but let him do it within the confines of the law. Calling for revolution is not constructive,” Mr Sakaja said.

He said time and money have been spent to reform institutions in this country and if Raila has issues with some of them, he should follow the law.

“President Uhuru Kenyatta has the best intentions for this country and that is why he has devolved 34 per cent instead of the 15 per cent of national revenue as enshrined in the Constitution. Let us have a national dialogue beyond party lines to allow devolution to thrive so that Kenyans benefit,” Mr Sakaja said.

Machakos Senator Johnstone Muthama, who was instrumental in the formation of the CORD alliance, says Raila has not engaged in any illegal activity but Jubilee were afraid of him “because they know that they stole his victory”.

“It is only a thief who always looks behind to see if he is being followed. Jubilee knows that they stole Raila’s votes and that Raila is loved across the country. So they see him as a threat even if he just stops to greet people,” Mr Muthama said.

The senator denied claims that CORD was out to destabilise the Jubilee government.

“We have no intention of destabilising a government that is shooting itself in the foot daily. We are just concerned with the performance of IEBC officials,” Mr Muthama said.

Kajiado West MP Moses Ole Sakuda called on Raila to give Jubilee time to deliver on its promises.

“Jubilee has formed government and tackled insecurity and other matters. Let us be given time and the country will see the difference between this regime and others,” Mr Sakuda said.

Since losing the elections to Uhuru, Raila has launched attacks against institutions that he views to have had any links with the management of the elections.

He has termed IEBC corrupt and incompetent and has been calling for its complete overhaul. But Jubilee leaders like nominated Senator Beth Mugo said that the IEBC was formed in a 50-50 arrangement where Raila himself selected half of the commissioners.

Dismissed on technicality

It is pointed out by Uhuru and Ruto allies that the Chief Executive Officer of the commission was given the job courtesy of the former PM’s side of the coalition.

Raila has also been critical of the Judiciary, which he still faults for throwing out CORD’s petition saying that despite the Constitution giving two weeks to determine a presidential petition, there is a section that says no case should be dismissed on a technicality.

“They should not have dismissed such a case on a technicality. We had 800 pages as basis of our petition. Dismissing it was not justice to our case,” Raila has said.

He said he had a robust campaign team and those saying Cord was disorganised were wrong.

“I always say if we lost, why did the electoral commission not publish the results? We had results in our petition, which were rejected by court order. If we said no to the Supreme Court’s verdict the country would have been on fire,” Raila said.

Two tribes

He added, “How can two tribes beat 38 tribes? Kikuyus and Kalenjins cannot beat the rest of Kenya. I got support from virtually all tribes. IEBC disenfranchised other tribes’ votes and gave other tribes the votes, giving them identity cards and registering more,” he said in a recent TV interview.

Raila admitted that there is a gap between the Jubilee and Cord numbers in Parliament.

“Jubilee got Amani and other independent candidates to their side. There is false confidence in the majority side but as time goes there will be fatigue. Euphoria and enthusiasm made them join Jubilee but this will wear down,” Mr Raila said.

Raila also noted that he is yet to make up his mind if he will contest the presidency in 2017.

“I have not said I will run in 2017. It is premature to talk about it. We have just come out of an election. My party has had no opportunity to review its leadership. When time comes the party makes that decision I will make a proper announcement,” he said.