Raila may have come out a clean man, but he cannot hood wink all the people all the time

By George NyabugaPolitics has often been described as a dirty game. A game where rules are constantly ignored, where players are often not bound by any rules other than those that favour them. To politicians, rules and promises are made to be broken. That is what makes politics exciting to some, but irritating to many.While we reflect on the events of the past week, and ask questions about the capacity of President Kibaki’s Government to play by the rules of the game, and serve Kenyans, we must begin to critically question the political process to make sense and understand the political game being played in the national arena.In the midst of all political intrigues playing out in the public, and trying to comprehend the modi operandi in the current Coalition Government, Kenyans have been left wondering whether the Government is worth it, and whether they can trust the political players. The verdict of many, I dare say, is that this Government is a complete failure, one which cannot see beyond parochial and even useless political interests that have further alienated the common people from the political system. The players are untrustworthy, they lack tack, and they are largely unable or indeed unwilling to put personal ambition before national interest.The above conclusions are premised on the ongoing mistrust between President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s wings of Government. The tragedy is that instead of thinking like a single, unitary entity, the Government does not play like a team. Players are divided; their loyalties pegged on sometimes blind and dogmatic discipleship. The Cabinet is populated by people possessing so disparate, even extreme political ideas and agendas that they are unable to see anything good in opponents. This is exemplified by the fight against corruption. The players hardly see each other’s errors and would rather remove the speck from each other’s eyes than logs in their own.Yet looking at cases of impropriety affecting ODM and PNU ministers, one is left with a bitter feeling that the people do not really think critically, and particularly on whether their actions warrant criticism. To them, a crime is only a crime when committed by the other side. No wonder they have been extremely defensive and naÔve in their defence of their own. In the process, the principals are caught in power games and labyrinths from which they are unable to extricate.For example, although it is easy to blame William Ruto for the maize scandal due to his position in the Agriculture ministry, the bigger picture may actually reveal Raila’s culpability in the whole saga. For he cannot deny being in the picture. He cannot claim to have been in the dark over the maize importation saga unless he was sleeping on the job. As supervisor of Government business, he abdicated his responsibility if he claims he was kept in the dark. The irony is that Raila rails at those caught out, and thus wants to paint himself as holier-than-thou when in fact he may share blame for the impropriety and scandals in Government. He may have asked his Permanent Secretary Mohamed Isahakia, and Administrative Secretary Caroli Omondi to quit but if we were to go by his earlier statement, he should have been wise to admit liability for the excesses of his juniors. Besides, it is not lost to the public that some of his ODM colleagues have been implicated in some shady deals, reports of which are in public domain. Yet, Raila often sees no evil, hears no evil. That is why he can often be cockily defensive. That is why he can dismiss journalists as a pack of hounds constantly seeking blood. But such faux pas reveals his inability to sometimes critically think about the consequences of his pronouncements and actions even though what he does oftentimes resonates with the public mood.Accordingly, if he has to be taken seriously, Raila must start to play by his own rules. He should demonstrate leadership, that he can be honest without seeking political mileage and aggrandisement, that he has the capacity to admit failure when necessary. There is no need for being constantly defensive, and even evasive.In effect, even though Raila’s modi operandi may seem clever, to discerning Kenyans, he is sometimes cheeky and even naÔve. As such, even though his populist approach to issues may have endeared him to some, he cannot hoodwink all the people all the time.Nonetheless, despite the ongoing intrigues and grandstanding in the Coalition Government, the battle against corruption must go on. This country is much bigger than the egos and ambitions of the political elite.

Raila may have come out a clean man, but he cannot hood wink all the people all the time

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Raila may have come out a clean man, but he cannot hood wink all the people all the time

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