In 2017, a few weeks before the General Election, Dr Ekuru Aukot called the media to address among other things, something that was upsetting him.

He complained that the fourth estate was not giving his campaign the airtime it deserved. He said he was up and about, holding rallies, in pursuit of the presidency yet the media was absent at the events.

It did not make sense to him that his opponents Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga were hogging all the space in national papers. He wanted to appear on the front pages of newspapers and the media to provide coverage whenever he called a press briefing; the same way they did for top presidential candidates.

“There are eight presidential candidates. Why are we only reading about two?” He posed.

When he first declared his presidential ambition, social media users called him a mouse in a race of horses, to which he responded: “Calling me a nonstarter is an oxymoron – as long as my decision creates an impact, you cannot call me a nonstarter.” He was relentless in his push for relevance.

He was called a busy body. A voice that people assumed would fizzle out as soon as the elections were over. He declared that he was unstoppable.

In two years, a lot has changed about the man from Turkana. His name has made it to front pages of newspapers without him holding press conferences. The horses that he once struggled to match up to are now reportedly fidgeting over his “Punguza Mizigo” Bill. His phone is now perpetually busy.

Change the status quo

“We are a team of thinkers who work silently but deliver big things,” says the Thirdway Alliance secretary general Fredrick Okango who says he speaks on behalf of Aukot.

“Dr Aukot is busy and not available but I can address anything about him,” he says.  

He describes Aukot as daring and ready to change the status quo. The Thirdway Alliance leader prefers to be viewed as a straight forward man who is not afraid of taking a position and pushing it, even if he is the only one championing the cause.

People who work with him claim that he is arrogant, proud and intellectually paternalistic.

“When you get into a disagreement, he uses big words and tries pushing the fact that he is educated to demean you,” says one of the people who worked with him in his presidential campaigns.

However, Aukot defends himself saying whenever he speaks the truth people think he is arrogant.

His low regard for the Press makes political reporters uncomfortable. They say he demands to control interviews, and gives undertones of threats when he is not able to sway the reporting.

Mr Okango says for a long time, their party had issues with specific individuals from the media because they focused on personalities and ignored the agenda that parties such as Thirdway Alliance, that Aukot leads, have to offer.

Aukot mentioned in previous interviews that he was brought up in a polygamous family among 27 siblings. He says his background made him believe that if he wants to be heard, he had to assert himself.

In the last few weeks, he has been in the limelight, surrounded by loyalists like Okango who do not hide their allegiance.

“He is a man with a vision. He believes in change and dares the status quo,” he says. Together, they are causing ripples online and off the web. His social media following has steadily grown. He is common in trending hashtags. He is on a roll!  

People who know Aukot say he loves the attention. Recently, when it was reported that six armed men had raided their office and shot at Okang’o, sceptics believed it was a well-choreographed trick to illuminate Aukot’s team and reposition their agenda in public debate.

“We know from history that if the bad people want you, they do not come to threaten you with guns. They shoot you and you will not tell the story,” said Frida Onyango, a student of political science in Nairobi.

But Okango says from the response since the attack, it seems people would have been more convinced if he had died.

“You cannot stage manage gun drama. If they would have shot and killed me, what would media and other people say?” He asks.

Aukot claims his life is in danger, and he is seeking audience with Inspector General of Police Hilary Mutyambai over his security.

Dagoretti DCI chief Francis Wanjau says police investigations revealed that no shots were fired by the alleged attackers, but Okang’o maintains that the attackers shot aimed at him. He says the attackers took his laptop and phone.

Despite the accusations against Aukot, he often proves to critics that his determination and consistence takes him places. If his “Punguza Mizigo” Bill sails through, then he would go into history as the man people ignored, yet he had a magic card that he unleashed just when people were thinking the game is over.