Mt Kenya hosts Nyanza elders

Laikipia Governor Ndiritu Muriithi yesterday challenged the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) leadership to counter distortions and negative stories about proposals contained in the document.

“It is not true to say an expanded executive featuring a prime minister and two deputies was invented by President Uhuru Kenyatta,” the Laikipia governor said.

“Way back in 1997, the Democratic Party (DP) developed an election blueprint in which its leader and presidential candidate Mwai Kibaki pledged to establish those offices once if he were elected. If President Kenyatta arrives at the same conclusion, then it is a good thing.”

Mr Muriithi was speaking in Kieni where Luo and Kikuyu elders held a meeting to lay the ground for the much-touted tour of Nyeri County by Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga early next year.

Mr Muriithi said election cycles make the economy contract by Sh1 trillion every five years and urged those against the BBI to reconsider their stance.

“Those saying BBI implementation is expensive should tell us what they are comparing it to. What would they rather pay?” Mr Muriithi asked.

Preach peace

The Kikuyu Council of Elders hosted a delegation that was led by East African Legislative Assembly MP and Mr Odinga’s elder brother Oburu Oginga.

Though organisers said the objective of the meeting was to preach peace, it was laden with political undertones, with the elders present declaring their intention to work with the ODM boss.

The planned Nyeri meeting is a follow-up of the October Bondo visit by Kikuyu elders.

The ODM delegation in Kieni, Nyeri county included Siaya Senator James Orengo, Seme MP James Nyikal, BBI secretariat official and university lecturer Adams Oloo and Rarieda MP Otiende Amolo.

Others were MPs Opiyo Wandayi (Ugunja), Senator Moses Kajwang (Homa Bay), Mr Martin Owimo (Ndhiwa), Ms Millie Odhiambo (Suba North) and Migori Woman Representative Pamela Odhiambo.

The elders side comprised their chairman Wachira Kiago, Mr Kigochi Waimiri (high priest), Mr Kanini Kega (Kieni MP), Mr Muriithi, DP chairman Esau Kioni, Kiambaa MP Paula Koinange, former Maragua MP Elias Mbau and former Transport and Infrastructure Cabinet Secretary Michael Kamau.

“The Bondo visit had a big impact on us. The political union between Nyanza and Mt Kenya is here to stay. No more memoranda of understanding on paper. The Nyeri meeting of elders will be the foundation of this political union,” Mr Oginga said.

Some observers think the ceremony in Nyeri might have an implication on the 2022 General Election.

Mr Oginga asked Mt Kenya and Nyanza people “to change their attitude” and embrace leaders from other regions.

He said Nyanza people have joined hands with elders from Mt Kenya for the sake of peace and unity, “and this should be extended to the other communities”.

“The coming together of the two regions should not be interpreted as a conspiracy against other communities. Ending the antagonism is a step in the right direction. We have demonised each other for long and want to break the ice now,” Mr Oginga told the gathering.

Mr Kiago said the unity of the two regions has the full backing of the political class.

Suspicion and mistrust

He added that Mt Kenya and Nyanza want to work together with the assistance of elected and other leaders to end suspicion and mistrust that have strained their relations for many decades.

Mr Kega said there would be many challenges in the search for unity but added that it is important that the two regions work together for the sake of national peace, reconciliation and development.

“We know for sure that the road ahead is bumpy. We are at the takeoff stage just like an aeroplane. When we reach the cruising level, all will be smooth,” the Kieni lawmaker told the gathering.

Since their March 9, 2018 handshake, Mr Odinga and President Uhuru Kenyatta have been working together.

There are reports of the two jointly making plans for 2022 though Mr Odinga has not publicly declared interest in any post.

After closing ranks with President Kenyatta, Mr Odinga appears to have firmly positioned himself next to the centre of power.

Once a sworn political enemy of the President, he has exploited the handshake to re-engineer and rebrand himself, especially in Mt Kenya.

Most leaders from the region branded Mr Odinga the greatest enemy of Mt Kenya in the last three elections – 2013 and twice in 2017.

Sweeping changes

Even after teaming up with the President and many other leaders from Mt Kenya to launch and drum up support for the (BBI) report that recommends sweeping changes in the country’s leadership structure, it is still an uphill task to sell Mr Odinga to the electorate.

While the President and Mr Odinga have toured many regions of the country to campaign for the inclusivity agenda captured in the BBI report, they are yet to hold a public rally in Mt Kenya where Mr Kenyatta’s deputy William Ruto has a big following.

Dr Ruto has enjoyed an uninterrupted headstart to cultivate the region for himself.

For several years, the region appeared committed to the ruling Jubilee Party’s 2022 succession politics.

According to the party’s 2013 and 2017 memoranda of understanding, Dr Ruto is the obvious choice in the succession race.

The President is expected to retire in 2022 after serving his second and final term.

Mt Kenya’s millions of votes makes it a rich hunting ground for aspiring successors.

Any move by Mr Odinga and the other contenders regarding the region, therefore, is closely watched.

Mt Kenya’s numerical vote bloc and wealth make it a highly sought region by any serious presidential candidate, even if the General Election is still two years away.

One of the toughest tasks for Mr Odinga is how to make the region overcome the fear of an “outsider” as head of state.

The greatest political fear residents of Mt Kenya counties have is a government in which they have no political and economic control over.

They would therefore push to have a candidate who will guarantee their interests and assuage their fears if they vote for him or her.

Additional reporting by Gakuu Mathenge