ICC case, return of suspended ministers jolt Uhuru and Ruto union

Kuresoi South MP Zakayo Cheruiyot address a thanksgiving prayer meeting for his Kisumu West counterpart Olag Aluoch at Ojola in Kisumu County on Friday 02/04/15. PHOTO: TITUS MUNALA/STANDARD

 

Questions on the return of suspended Cabinet Secretaries, an onslaught from the Opposition with threats to impeach President Uhuru Kenyatta and a worried coalition partner battling a case at the International Criminal Court have muddied the political waters in the ruling Jubilee coalition.

The political union between the President and his Deputy William Ruto built on the common bond of ICC cases was all rosy until the President’s case at The Hague was dropped.

Since then, a silent war has erupted in the ruling coalition triggering fears that Uhuru and Ruto could soon differ publicly.

The official script has denied reports of any friction in the union. Unofficially, there are reports of cut-throat power games of Machiavellian proportions, which some say is the President’s way of trying to get rid of Ruto and his ICC baggage before the next elections. Yet others argue it is Ruto’s way of trying to get power in 2017 and useit to extricate himself from the ICC Uhuru style.

There is also growing restlessness over the power of Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru whom the Opposition and some suspended ministers want shown the door over the Sh791 million rip-off at the National Youth Service (NYS).

Credible sources within government told The Standard on Sunday that the bone of contention revolves around a Cabinet reshuffle and a general feeling within Ruto’s circles that his case at the ICC is not being given due attention.

Rumours swirled on Friday that a Cabinet reshuffle was in the offing. Sources intimated that even the national broadcaster, Kenya Broadcasting Corporation (KBC), had already been signaled to be on standby for a special presidential address. But when it emerged that the reshuffle process stalled after both President Kenyatta and Ruto failed to agree on the list, the plot collapsed. Instead, only a special Cabinet meeting was held to discuss the ongoing teachers’ strike and to approve closure of all schools.

Having disagreed on Cabinet changes, they toyed with the idea of shuffling the principal secretaries and fill vacant positions in state parastatals. But that too failed.

Those in the know say the Deputy President is uncomfortable that Cabinet Secretaries Davis Chirchir and Felix Koskei are yet to be reinstated despite having been cleared. The CSs were suspended over corruption allegations levelled against them in a presidential dossier released on March 26 . They have been out of office – but on full salary — since.

The strain comes in the face of an impeachment motion against President Kenyatta being mooted by CORD. If you ask MPs allied to the Deputy President, their grouse is not personal — it is a matter of principle: ICC propelled Uhuru and Ruto to power; that power should get their leader out of ICC.

Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen, a close confidant of Ruto, dismissed allegations of tension in government but was quick to admit that there is a general feeling that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs is not doing enough on matters ICC.

Government paralysis

“It is a product of personal imagination for anyone to suggest presence of tension between the President and the Deputy President. It’s such a lie. We have made it clear that our candidate in 2017 is President Kenyatta. However, on the issue of ICC, it is indeed true that there is a feeling amongst our members that the Foreign Affairs ministry needs to do more,” he said.

For Zakayo Cheruiyot, Kuresoi South MP, things are not what they seem. “I am aware of disaffection from other political leaders from our community,” Cheruiyot said yesterday.

Indeed, just yesterday, Bomet Governor Isaack Ruto waded into the ICC debate with claims that Jubilee government is not keen on helping Ruto clear his name.

Speaking during a fundraising for Migingo Secondary School in Kisumu County on Friday, Ruto said  the Kalenjin community unanimously supported President Kenyatta and the DP to enable them clear their names jointly.

“They asked us to support them and we gave them five years to clear their names. Now, one of them has cleared his name while leaving his companion to fight alone. This matter seems to be beyond us and should be resolved by the village elders’ courts,” he said.

For political scientist Mutahi Ngunyi, the impending impeachment motion will further buttress the paralysis in government.

“There is no way you can talk about tension in government without talking about impeachment. There is a connection between the paralysis in government and the intentions to impeach the President. And I think that particular intention is a shared one between Raila and the Deputy President. This is critical, Raila can file that motion in Parliament because he only needs 117 MPs and he has them. For him to reach the constitutional threshold to push it through, he needs the entire URP. Given right now Ruto is in problems at the ICC, then clearly this is the best way out for him. It’s a threat he can use,” said Prof Ngunyi.

But Dagoretti South MP Dennis Waweru said the talk about a division or an underhand move for impeachment was a “wish” of political scavengers keen on splitting Kenyatta and Ruto for selfish gains.

“We are telling them that is wishful thinking and daydreaming. The working relationship between the President and his deputy is as strong and unshakable as it was when we formed the Jubilee Alliance. No amount of political threats will dissuade the Jubilee government from delivering what we promised Kenyans,” said Waweru.

But to Ngunyi, the talk of a deadlock on a Cabinet reshuffle lends credence to the possibility that the President may be getting ready for the next elections without Ruto in his plans. “If there is a disagreement of a Cabinet reshuffle, it’s because what Uhuru is setting up is a ‘war’ Cabinet. It’s a Cabinet to insulate him and a Cabinet to take him into the 2017 elections, but in the meantime Ruto is not very sure that whatever they are choosing is in his own interest because Uhuru may also be interested in somebody who can replace him in case things went haywire at the ICC.”

Reached for a comment, Tetu MP Ndung’u Gethenji would not discuss the matters except to say, “As far as I am concerned, the coalition is cohesive, functional and ready to rule Kenya for the next 20 years,” he said.

Waiguru factor

The other factor that has contributed in building the said tension, according to credible sources, is the Waiguru factor.

Sections of MPs associated with the Deputy President are said to be uncomfortable with her “huge” power in government.

“A lot of those troubles in government possibly revolve around Waiguru. You know why? Dynasties are jealous institutions which means that Uhuru is looking for a successor and the successor he will get from the Kikuyu nation. That successor will have to be somebody he has seriously created so that the loyalty of that person is not in doubt at all. Uhuru has created Waiguru as one of the possible successors amongst the GEMA nation and I think Ruto is uncomfortable with that. Ruto knows that Waiguru is possibly the type that can really keep him in check when he becomes President,” said Prof Ngunyi.

Indeed, Bomet Central MP Ronald Tonui on Friday issued a statement demanding that Waiguru be sent home.