Voice of reason or Jubilee apologist? Musalia Mudavadi now answers critics

Amani National Congress Party leader Musalia Mudavadi talks to the Standard at the party’s Headquarters in Nairobi

NAIROBI: Former Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi has dismissed claims he is leaning towards the Jubilee coalition with an eye on the prized position of running mate in 2017, a few weeks after he rejected an offer from CORD leader Raila Odinga to rejoin ODM as deputy party leader.

In an interview with The Standard on Sunday, Mudavadi also asked Jubilee and CORD leaders to stop bickering over the International Criminal Court (ICC) cases facing Deputy President William Ruto and radio journalist Joshua arap Sang.

“Raila’s was a tongue in cheek invitation because there are no vacant positions in ODM. The position of deputy party leader he was offering is currently jointly occupied by governors Hassan Joho (Mombasa) and Wycliffe Oparanya (Kakamega),” he said.

ETHNIC ANIMOSITY

Concerning the ICC cases, his supporters like former Shinyalu MP Kizito Mugali, hailed his intervention as “the voice of reason” and called for an end to the ongoing prayer rallies which they claim are fueling ethnic animosity and championing personal interests.

But critics from the Opposition have launched attacks against Mudavadi claiming that he has become a Jubilee apologist preparing himself for a possible coalition with President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“How can one fault me for telling the country that the ongoing debate between Jubilee and CORD leaders is dangerous and might spiral out of control?” asked Mudavadi.

Sitting on a couch at his Amani National Congress (ANC) office in Lavington, gripping the edge of a table and occasionally sipping from a cup of tea in the company of Mugali, a close political ally, the former long serving Cabinet minister scoffed at claims that he was taking advantage of the ICC situation.

He appeared to be oblivious of claims that he was positioning himself to work with President Kenyatta in the event Ruto is not Uhuru’s running mate in 2017.

He said: “I cannot answer them or speak for President Kenyatta because I have not heard those claims. My focus now is to strengthen ANC so that we can offer genuine and strong competition in the next elections.”

Mudavadi expressed concern that politicians were habouring ill-will against Ruto and talked about ANC being an independent party that has not entered into any coalition arrangement with either the government side or the Opposition. Asked about his relationship with both Uhuru and Raila, and who he would be more comfortable working with given his past history with them, Mudavadi was cagey.

“Each of them has got their strengths and weaknesses but it is not fair for me to rank them because they are human beings.” Pushed further on his past working relationship with them, Mudavadi said: “I reserve my comment.”

He painted a gory picture when asked to explain his fears about the prayer rallies, describing them as choreographed ethnic mobilisation.

“They are re-bottling the 2007-08 viral animosity ahead of 2017. On the surface, the politicians from communities that form Jubilee are intent on stemming off some perceived fallout as a result of the ‘fixing’ claims but in so doing, they are throwing caution to the wind by attempting to shift guilt to the Opposition. It is bound to be fruitless anxiety that will ignite ethnic flare-ups,” said Mudavadi.

RUTO FIXERS

But Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen disagrees with Mudavadi and instead wants him to appreciate that the prayers have “worked miracles” because hitherto unknown information was being revealed.

He cited Raila’s revelation that the National Inteligence Service (NIS) handed over some confidential evidence to the Waki Commission which was later forwarded to the ICC with the sealed envelope containing the list of suspects bearing the greatest responsibility for the violence.

Murkomen said the prayers had also seen Gatundu MP Moses Kuria come out to reveal that he paid some witnesses to fix Ruto and was willing to testify for the defence at the ICC.

“People have short memories. Mudavadi forgets that he got a bigger job than Ruto in the coalition government despite the latter having delivered more MPs and votes to ODM, yet he cannot even offer prayers so that the humiliation and suffering he is going through can stop,” said Murkomen.

But Mudavadi advised that silent prayers can have a bigger impact than shouting from podiums and that claims of fixing put paid to the alleged reasons for the formation of Jubilee.

“We were told the union was a healing process for protagonist communities. But fixing claims reveal the tenuous nature of the political convenience. What is beginning to unravel is that Jubilee may have been born out of that convenience but was not based on honesty. The lessons are that unions conceived out of deception are bound to be maintained through blackmail and intimidation,” he said.

His fears are that deception, intimidation and blackmail are bound to infect the management of national affairs.

He cautioned that playing victim was bound to boomerang on the intended beneficiaries because there can only be one victim at a time and re-enacting the victim syndrome is counter-productive and reveals they are living a lie built on quicksand.

Mudavadi sees another danger at the ICC where he cautioned that neither the case of the President nor those of Ruto and Sang has been successfully concluded yet the MPs are telling the ICC that we cheated the court.

“The confessions of fixing are falling into the mosquito net trap where the rescuer gets nabbed. Claims are bound to widen the net for Kenyans whom the ICC would net thus prolonging the agony of the accused,” he said.

He sees a scenario where ICC can now legitimately reopen the cases and recall other suspects because the court can notice the use of proxies to evade the gag of commenting on the case and also because the alleged fixers are claiming that the accused were complicit in the deception. He further cautioned that the prayers were raising political temperatures in the country as evidenced by exchanges between the Opposition and Jubilee.

“The panga they are sharpening will cut and spill blood from both sides. Claims that ‘I fixed you because you were fixing me’ can only inflame a very fragile country,” said Mudavadi.

He also faulted the Jubilee brigade for “not being honest” with itself because hidden behind the face of solidarity is enormous suspicion of guilt that is being managed by face-saving allegations against Opposition.

The ANC leader blamed the Opposition for buying the script and willingly advancing the narrative of guilt instead of fighting to protect the silent majority.

He also took issue with politicians who are offering to testify for Ruto now at the ICC as there is no sincerity in any of what he called the stage-managed offers and counter offers.

POLITICAL MILEAGE

“The desire is to milk political mileage out of Ruto’s misfortune. If anyone wanted the truth to come out, there would be no need for conditions for testifying,” said Mudavadi.

His worry is that they could put themselves in trouble because ICC penalties for perjury are extremely severe but thinks it’s all political posturing for everyone who wants a piece of the eminent fallout in a game where Ruto is the pawn and his support base the prized bull.

Another worry for Mudavadi is the clamour by Ainabkoi MP Samuel Chepkonga and National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale to have the Waki report debated in Parliament, saying that could open a fresh round of hostilities.

“As a person involved in the mediation under Kofi Annan, I was the first to caution that though Parliament has the right to re-open the report, they must know it may not be in national interest,” said Mudavadi.

He said it might be fine if done out of good faith but that would mean they should be ready to oversee its full implementation. That is because the report is not just about ICC. It contains other far-reaching recommendations that have not seen the light of day.

“I have in mind, for example, the issue of a local tribunal to try cases of actual perpetrators of the violence, many of who are loitering our streets and villages. Therefore MPs could be re-opening a Pandora’s Box that they might not be in a position to manage and could inflame and consume the country,” said Mudavadi.