President’s silence keeps all guessing on preferred successor

By ROSELYNE OBALA

As President Kibaki leads the country to celebrate its 49th anniversary since independence in his last public holiday, his preferred successor still remains a secret close to his chest.

The ceremony comes at a time when the country has had only three presidents since gaining self-rule and on the verge of going to the next polls to elect the fourth.

 Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, the first and founding President died in office in 1978 and was succeeded by his Vice-President Daniel arap Moi.

In 2001 retired President Moi brought Jomo’s son Uhuru into the political arena by first nominating him to Parliament to replace former nominated MP Mark Too, as he slowly groomed him for the top seat.

Moi endorsed Uhuru as his preferred successor in the 2002 General Election against President Kibaki, the then opposition presidential candidate.

Both Uhuru and former president Moi were in the Independt party Kanu.

Kibaki won with a landslide victory through the National Rainbow Coalition, Narc and brought 40 years of Kanu rule to an end.

Jubilee ticket

Succession politics have dominated political functions, with claims that President Kibaki was fronting the candidature of Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi.

Mudavadi who bolted out of ODM is currently advancing his bid on a United Democratic Forum ticket.

He is set to face off with The National Alliance (TNA) party presidential aspirant, Uhuru who is running for president under the Jubilee coalition ticket.

However, when reports linking the Head of State with Mudavadi did the rounds, State House was quick to deny any links with him and even clarified that it is not sponsoring any political party.

Kibaki has maintained that even as he heads for retirement after the next elections, he will not influence Kenyans’ choice of the next president.

Allegations by Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo that State House was backing some candidates did not go down well with State House and described Jirongo’s remarks as careless and irresponsible.

Kibaki has on many occasions urged presidential candidates seeking to occupy State House to base their campaigns on development issues.

President Kibaki’s private secretary Prof Nick Wanjohi has also not shed off alleged links with Mudavadi’s UDF party as reported in the media.

And the Head of State has made it clear that he would not propose anyone from his Party of National Unity (PNU) nor the PNU coalition as his potential successor.

Political analysts say unlike his predecessors, Kibaki was being cautious in the manner in which he handles the issue of his successor mainly because he does not want to antagonise either side.

Kibaki had once hit out at politicians from the Central region whom he accused of fighting to be his successor after he retires next year yet their development record was wanting.