Mutua walking a political tightrope even as Machakos sparkles

Machakos Governor Alfred Mutua took to his work with such gusto and in such a whirlwind that he must have left his floundering colleagues in other counties green with envy. He was acclaimed as the only governor who understood the concept of development in the devolved system of governance. Could that acclaim have been premature?

This is a country where the principle of collective responsibility still holds sway. In a setup in which political leaders consider it anathema to be in a hurry to please the masses — when this can be done once every five years to great effect — Dr Mutua was not going to have his way. He was bound to be slowed down. And the clandestine forces pulled him up so short he must be wondering what hit him. He had to understand that in the context of Kenya’s political leadership, collectivism must be espoused over individuality.

Now that his enthusiasm appear to have been curtailed and his soaring ego deflated, the gentleman has decided to lash out in all directions. He has taken a devil-may-care attitude, a bravado that fools nobody, least of all, himself. He blames his party boss, Kalonzo Musyoka, for failing to put a muzzle on Mr Bernard Kiala, the deputy governor, and has threatened to quit Wiper.

Mutua knows, as well as the next person knows, he cannot do that without forfeiting the perks he is so accustomed to; without walking himself into political oblivion. It will be foolhardy to walk out of the Wiper party and end up bidding his time until an ambassadorship comes up. That could be a very long wait, and Dr Alfred Mutua, a man accustomed to public limelight, may not have that patience.

Recall an instance when Mutua took on a road contractor while serving as Government spokesman. The poor fellow, intimidated by the presence of bodyguards, did not know the good doctor had no legal authority to inspect road construction, but Dr Mutua had his day.

There is something about media cameras that pull politicians like a moth is drawn to light.

Governor Mutua thought he had upstaged his deputy in guile and teamed up with the boisterous members of county assembly to give Kiala a mighty shove towards the precipice. He held back in glee, eyes closed, waiting to hear the thud from his fall. That did not happen because, the senators, playing their own little political games, actually arrested Kiala’s fall. And the deputy governor had the audacity to thump his chest on surviving the near political demise.

This must have hit Mutua hard. He wasted no time to show who calls the shots in Masaku, by relieving Kiala of his executive duties, leaving him, as he called it, a “minister without porfolio”.

There is visible and tangible development in Machakos County that is the brainchild of Mutua. But that does not, as much as his deportment appears to suggest, make Machakos County his personal fiefdom; to run as the fancy takes him.

The tiff with his deputy governor, not counting his differences with the Senator Johnstone Muthama, risks exposing him as a leader who is temperamental, vindictive and impulsive. He is not given to working under duress and the slightest pressure has exposed the weak point in his armour. And he should have known how to deal with what awaited him the moment he threw himself into the dirty game.

His reaction even after Kiala got the Senate’s reprieve, can only serve to vindicate claims made against the governor. Further, grey areas of the Constitution that cover management of counties are now coming out clearly. It is time deputy governors were accorded some constitutional authority. Why should governors enjoy such carte blanche?