Ruto and the riddle of the prodigal son who returned home to a big banquet

By Peter Kimani

A week, they say, is a long time in politics. It’s adequate for Eldoret North MP William Ruto to address a meeting in Ikolomani where bullman Boni Khalwale sings that Nusu Mkeka (half-carpet) ballad, and Ruto raps in by chiding a nation cannot be built on riddles.

And before you can figure out whom Ruto had in mind, he’d have had enough time to hike a lift (some places are too dangerous to arrive in entourages), have some pre-cooked dinner and desert and get back to his regular beat before the day breaks.

But let’s stop speaking in riddles – there are people who are more gifted in that regard – and try digest news of Ruto’s alleged plan to return to his old party, the Orange Democratic Movement, where he left in a huff.

Big sneer

Then, ODM leader, who happens to be Prime Minister Tinga, said some chaps – in obvious reference to Ruto and Deputy PM Uhuru – were gallivanting around the country pretending to be praying for peace when they deserved to be in custody, awaiting trial in The Hague for their alleged role in post-poll violence.

Ruto returned the favour, in ways that were less dramatic, so his message did not stick in my mind.

But I remember his sneer over Tinga’s politics of riddles, which he saw as construed for comic relief rather than serious task of nation-building.

Ruto’s return to ODM, if and when that happens, shouldn’t be construed as entertainment as some are suggesting. This is what real-politic is all about.

Here’s why: It resonates well with Ruto’s spirituality. He is a good Christian, I hear, and was rather seriously “saved” in his youth. The idea of the “prodigal” son returning home to a major banquet must be a very attractive proposition to him.

Foster peace

Ministers Henry Kosgey and Franklin Bett are complaining why Tinga should offer Ruto a chance to return “home,” leave alone serving as his running mate, while ignoring those who remained faithfully behind him. Kosgey and Bett should read the Bible again to understand Ruto’s enormous power as a “prodigal” son.

Ruto’s return also speaks to his Christian faith, and there are prospects of him being used to foster peace in our land.

By returning to ODM would imply he has forgiven other politicians who have transgressed against him, and this is a trope that can be used to lure folks at the International Criminal Court to consider his conditional discharge, and allow him to foster reconciliation in strife-stricken hamlets in his constituency, like the Kiambaa Church.

This was the defining moment in post-election violence where women and children were burnt alive in Eldoret because of their ethnicity.

Ruto’s gesture of forgiveness towards Tinga would be a powerful symbol about other Kenyans forgiving others.

There are other interesting aspects about Ruto’s alliance with Tinga. It is reported Tinga has offered Ruto half a stake in the next coalition Government, which means each would pick half the Cabinet.

Tinga has been complaining about getting nusu mkate (half loaf) in his coalition with Prezzo Kibaki, and he vowed never to repeat such a thing because he got short shrift.

How sharing his mkate with Ruto retains him more than the half he has been bickering about for four years means something is not adding up.

Perhaps those are the kinds of riddles Tinga would like to throw in the air for Kenyans to infer their meaning.

A binder full of women put Romney in a serious bind

In just about three weeks, Americans will decide whether to extend a new term for Cousin Barry at the White House, or to pass the baton to a new man. The name of that man is Mitt Romney, the Republican presidential candidate.

The race is predicted to be pretty close, and pollsters here – perhaps as politicised as the folks back home – say the two candidates are tied in several swing states.

There is a significant group of undecided voters, accounting for about 10 per cent of the vote, many of them women.

So, this week, in a live TV debate, Romney and Cousin Barry were asked to spell out their policies on women’s issues, from employment to contraceptives.

In his bid to win women voters, Romney explained his efforts towards gender parity during his time as governor. They included his hunt for qualified women candidates.

He got them, he said, “whole binders (files) full of women”. This gaffe went viral on social media. Within half an hour, it had 20,000 likes on a Tumblr and Facebook pages, and by the end of the debate had risen to 70,000 likes.

Missing facts

Reason? There are so many qualified women in this day and age, and there is little doubt any whole woman would fit in “binder” of any sort.

That has put Romney in a bind, and his efforts to extricate himself have not been easy, particularly when a fact-check confirmed he did not order the alleged search for women candidates. Or had any delivered in a binder. That’s a hard place to be.

Why Dor and other MRC supporters should tread easy in city of Nairobi

By the time you read this, the association of imams may have unleashed some of their unspecified administrative, political or whatever responses they promised to press for the release of Nominated MP Sheikh Mohammad Dor, who was arrested mid-week in Nairobi over his claims that he would finance the Mombasa Republican Council (MRC) if approached.

Another country

MRC, which has been implicated in a raft of criminal activities, including murder and arson in the Coast Province have a catchy slogan: Pwani si Kenya. They want to secede and establish their own State.

Considering it’s been a while since I visited the Coast – when I do, many of them appear to believe I originate there – I hope I shall always have a home at the Coast, whether as Newfoundland, or as part of Kenya.

I would hope that both survive – Pwani and Kenya, as well as their citizens. Which is why I’m offering some unsolicited tip to Dor and other MRC sympathisers.

When they make public declarations of their intentions to support MRC, it might be wise to let things cool down before they march in the streets of Nairobi. Remember, that could be another country if MRC succeeds in its quest for autonomy.