Friday, February 03, 2012

“Raila Tosha” Kibaki Finally Utters The Two Magic Words In His Sleep

My late father told me this story many times. He was there.

President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta sat down to lunch in Kakamega shortly before he left for Kisumu on that fateful day in 1969 where his motorcade was stoned in that infamous incident. Those who were there could see that the president was preoccupied and appeared to be in a foul mood. This was confirmed shortly because he hardly touched his soup (which was only the first course). Five minutes later he got up and his motorcade was on the move headed for Kisumu in what was destined to be his last trip to the lakeside city. Clearly Kenyatta was very nervous about that last Kisumu trip.
The late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga

Yesterday President Mwai Kibaki made a historical visit to Kisumu. He received a very warm welcome but appeared to be uncomfortable throughout the proceedings. Predictably most of the politicians who were given an opportunity to speak keptreaching back to history to remind us all that this was no ordinary trip. And they wasted no time in putting the president under immense pressure. They took his mind again and again back to 2002 where Raila Odinga uttered those famous words that changed the course of Kenya’s history, actually just two words “Kibaki Tosha.” They politely told the president that now would be a good time to return that favour. They also wanted the president to rename the Kisumu International airport The Jaramogi Oginga Odinga International airport. The president in his usual style ignored both requests.

History has an uncanny way of repeating itself like some stuck record. Two men (a son and his father) have twice decided the Kenyan presidency and both times they did it conscious of the fact that it would put them in pole position to take over the very same office from those they named.

The late Jaramogi Oginga Odinga told a shocked Legco (Kenyan parliament in those days) that Jomo Kenyatta was like a god to the Kenyan people and there was no way Kenyans were going to consider independence without Kenyatta being freed. With all due respect to the memory of the older Odinga this was nothing but a selfish political move to block a kid on the block who was hurtling at break neck speed towards the presidency. One Thomas Joseph Mboya. Odinga knew that Tom Mboya usually won his elections to parliament with over 90 per cent of the people voting for him being from the Kikuyu community. If Mboya was seen as not being in support of Jomo Kenyatta, he would be wiped out politically.

Historians will want to note that that was one of the very first seeds of tribalism in Kenyan politics ever planted, but that is a post for another day.

What Kenyans still don’t know is that when Raila Odinga 50 years later did exactly what his dad did and said Kibaki Tosha, he was also blocking another man from ascending to the presidency and that man was Simeon Nyachae. Nyachae had made his plans carefully and had managed to position himself as a compromise candidate to take over the presidency of the country for an interim period of one term only t give the other biggies a little time to sort themselves out and come up with one candidate. Using his vast wealth and influence he had enough support to see his long standing ambition through. Raila scuttled Nyacahe’s plans with his famous two words in support of Kibaki. Admittedly Raila’s main motive for backing Kibaki was to ensure the defeat of President Moi and his KANU party.

Now yesterday Mwai Kibaki predictably refused to return the favour that saw him ascend to the presidency. Now if history finishes off this repeat thing Raila will NOT ascend to the presidency. Instead somebody else will come from nowhere and shockingly become the fourth president. Maybe some folks will even call him a passing cloud, but of course he or she will be nothing of the sort.

But enough with the history lessons which bore so many of my readers and lets get to hard ball politics.

The reason why Kibaki’s refusal shocked some insiders is because the president has already made a pact with Raila Odinga. Kibaki will fully support his bid for the presidency and in return President Odinga will protect the Kibakis. And so what happens if President Odinga never happens? It means that Kibaki’s retirement will be extremely uncomfortable.

However the question Kenyans should be asking themselves is are these Raila Toshas and Kibaki Toshas as effective are they used to be? I think NOT. The era of endorsements deciding the presidency is over why are the political class refusing to open their eyes to the new reality? The next election will be decided by the young people of Kenya and they are in a foul mood at the moment and terribly impatient measuring Kenya on the same scale as developed economies whose democracies are over 100 years old. They watch their news and admire the American system of governance and are continually asking themselves why not Kenya?

Presidential candidate Odinga dyes his hair black regularly and there is no doubt that his handlers will want him to spot an even younger look as the presidential campaigns gather momentum. Will that be enough to win the presidency against an extremely crowded field? I think not. I believe that we are headed for a run off when we finally sit down to elect our next president. It will be Raila versus a much younger nobody and that kind of contest will not be good for the courageous but unlucky son of Jaramogi.

I’m keeping my eyes firmly on boring history knowing fully well that the damned thing is going to repeat itself yet again

Tutaona. (we shall see what happens)

12 comments:

  1. Now this is what you call a Chris Kumekucha post. Nothing else comes close.

    Kudos bro. You are truly gifted.

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  2. Nonsense!
    Since when has Kibaki's word ever meant anything? Raila, who has been screwed more time than I care to mention by Kibaki, would be a complete idiot if he took Kibaki's word again.
    In any case, Raila has been screwed so many time by others (including Kibaki) in his blind quest to be PORK that I wouldn't be surprised if he believed Kibaki this time round.
    Bure kabisa wote!

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  3. Anon @5:51 am

    Thanx for making my day. My ribs are aching from excessive laughter.

    I am not sure if you realize that what you are saying is that even what Kibaki says in his sleep cannot be believed. That's a new one. LOL!!

    Chris Kumekucha

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  4. Chris

    Is there any relationship between you and Tom Mboya. You have relentlessly elevated him to heights that he doesn't belong. Stop ignoring the truth, which is that Tom Mboya, just like Robert Ouko, became famous after his death.

    The old constitution that you so abhor had his immense contribution, with the aim of increasing the power of the president and abolishing multipartism, an aim that was very successful. He was simply used by Kenyatta and dumped. I hope from today you'll get that.

    What evidence do you have that Jaramogi Oginga Odinga supported Kenyatta because he didn't want Tom Mboya to become president?

    Secondly Raila support for Kibaki was because he wanted a viable solution to remove Moi, or is it Uhuru, from power, and not to prevent Nyachae from ascending to Presidency. This is because it was known that supporting Nyachae wasn't going to make him achieve that. Nyachae was infuriated by this up to date, and so is a friend of mine who was in the same group. So stop lying.

    The question of Kibaki supporting Raila is so far-fetched to me. Think ICC, Ruto and Uhuru. Maybe I'll elaborate on this.

    Chris, have you ever talked with young people? I think you rarely do that. Ethnic politics will never end soon. Ask yourself why Ruto and Uhuru have so much support. If they run for presidency together I see them winning. And please don't compare yourself with USA.

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  5. Hii mambo ya tosha-ring (torturing) people is so futile. Let the voters decide.

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  6. I am not sure if you realize that what you are saying is that even what Kibaki says in his sleep cannot be believed. That's a new one. LOL!!

    xxx

    Kumekucha,

    Kibaki is a man who breaks every single promise he has every made, even his vows to Wambui....going so far as to deny her in public with a straight face. If I heard Kibaki fart, I would not believe it was him.
    Raila on the other hand is like a donkey, believing he will eventually get to eat the carrot on a stick tied to his head. Yet when the carrot is finally yanked away by the master, he looks like a pitiful clown yapping to captive audiences on how he was screwed yet again. And the funniest part....he looks absolutely surprised at the turn of events. Forrest Gump was loveable. Raila isn't.

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  7. Chris my brother,
    E-COP here. what do you have against LOOKING YOUNG? Kwani PENSIONERS can't look like WIPER or PETER KENNETH? hio ni bure Kabisa

    The truth is we all want to REMAIN FOREVER YOUNG. While laughing at TINGA for DYING his hair yet you are at the same time TRYING to APPEAL to the YOUTHFUL READER by refusing to give HISTORY LESSONS because they bore? Stop the DOUBLE STANDARDS won't you?


    PS: ati TINGA was PORK BLOCKING Nyachae? kwani NYACHAE ni nani?

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  8. Mwarangethe Sir, I have some surprising news for. I have some simple records to share with you. Evidence from Kenyan Parliament Hansard records. Sir, Kenya is not Sovereign any more. As per Hon Dr Eseli
    Dr. Eseli: Thank you, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, for this chance to contribute to
    this very important debate.
    Indeed, Mr. Michuki, whom I respect very much, is a person of very many years' experience
    and has very deep wisdom. I have been lucky to share some of that wisdom with him, and he informed
    me that sovereignty is like virginity: Once you lose it, it is gone! Those who are talking about passing
    this Bill as a way of retaining Kenya's sovereignty, should know that we lost it long ago. The moment
    we called in foreigners to intervene in the issues that we had, our sovereignty was gone. The moment
    we were struck by hunger and the first thing we did to celebrate Obama becoming President was to
    ask him for a loan to buy maize, we lost our sovereignty. When we cannot feed our country, we lose
    our sovereignty. The argument that by passing this Bill we are safeguarding our sovereignty is a lie.
    We lost it long ago.
    Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, at the risk of sounding repetitive, I have said before that
    at Independence in 1963, we conceived two terrible twins, who were delivered in 1964 when Kenya
    became a Republic. The two twins were impunity and corruption. They feed on each other. When
    corruption is starved, it is fed by impunity. When impunity is starved, it is fed by corruption.
    The biggest fear is that we all know what we should have done long ago, but we never did it.
    It has been cyclic for a very long time, from 1992, where we have only looked at impunity vis-a-vis
    death of Kenyans resulting from elections. But impunity has got many other faces. This is just a shed
    of it.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Mr. Nguyai: Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, first and foremost, let me say from the
    outset that I believe in sovereignty of this country. The challenge that we have is not about the
    sovereignty of the country. I also believe that there is need to end the culture of impunity. I want
    justice to be done. I want to get to the root cause of the atrocities that happened early last year. I
    know people died and houses were burnt. I know women, and even men, were raped. However, I
    must say that the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill does not have the capacity to deal with
    these issues.
    Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, first and foremost, it is vague. It is subject to manipulation. It is vague in the sense that we do not know whether the prosecutor is subject to the powers of the Attorney-General. It is vague in the sense that we do not know whether the judges who will be in the special court or the magistrates are subject to the Constitution. The statute that is to be forwarded after the Constitution is passed does not have a provision in which the victims themselves can seek remedy or can be provided remedy if they were not to be represented fairly.
    Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, there is no provision for a civil process as far as a remedy is concerned. I particularly take exception with the manner in which this Bill was introduced to
    the National Assembly. The Government rightly knew that there was a deadline approaching and for
    that reason, they had three months. Why did they wait until the last 24 hours to conveniently sneak in
    Page 4724

    the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill? If justice is delayed in this case, and for that matter denied, that justice has been denied by the Government. For some who talk about the sovereignty of this country, and I want to support my colleague, we lost our sovereignty when we failed to protect our own people.
    Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would propose that we should not be vague. We want the key perpetrators of this particular atrocities to go to The Hague because we have developed a culture of impunity. We have seen many times from when this House came into being politicians
    preside over the cannibalization of State resources. Now there is a new adage that Members of Parliament eat maize and drink oil. For that reason, I feel that this House and in particular, the members of this country do not have the protection---

    Mr. Nguyai: Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I said and I want to clarify that there is an adage and hon. Members have heard it. I can define the adage which is the perception that Members of
    Parliament eat maize and wash it down with oil.
    Mr. Affey: On a point of order, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is the hon. Member in
    order to suggest that Members of Parliament, which means even the Chair, eat maize and drink oil?
    The Temporary Deputy Speaker (Prof. Kaloki): Order, Mr. Nguyai! Will you, please, drop
    that line of submission and proceed?
    Mr. Nguyai: Mr. Temporary Deputy Sir, I will withdraw and say that some Members of Parliament eat maize and wash it down with oil!
    My concern is that in the Special Tribunal for Kenya Bill, the witness protection clause is vague. Witnesses have no right to hide their identity. They have no right to be sheltered and protected---
    The Minister for Justice, National Cohesion and Constitutional Affairs (Ms. Karua): On
    a point of order, Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir. Is the hon. Member on the Floor in order to
    anticipate debate? He is talking about the Special Tribunal for Kenya Bill and yet the Bill before the
    House is the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill. There is the rule of relevance in the Standing
    Orders.
    The Temporary Deputy Speaker (Prof. Kaloki): Mr. Nguyai, are you anticipating that
    debate?

    ReplyDelete
  10. Mr. Nguyai: Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I am not anticipating debate on the Special
    Tribunal for Kenya Bill. I was just clarifying that if we pass this Constitution of Kenya (Amendment)
    Bill, we shall be opening a gateway that will not help us protect the citizens of this country.
    I would like to sincerely urge hon. Members to reflect and see if they are doing justice to the
    people of this country. We, as a leadership, have failed to protect ourselves against corruption. We
    have failed to protect our citizens from being exploited. They now go hungry. What makes us think
    that when we are implicated, and some of us will be implicated, we will fail to protect ourselves? It is
    for that reason that I oppose this Bill.
    Mr. Kioni: Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, I thank you for this opportunity. Today is a special day
    for me, because on a day like today on 14th February, 1998 my nephew was murdered during the
    tribal clashes. He was a young student at Kenyatta University. We did try to get prosecution to a point
    where we had one witness who was bold enough to come to court and give evidence. In our
    estimation then the evidence was so graphic that we thought the culprit had been nailed. It was ruled
    that one witness was not adequate, and we had nothing to do. The other witnesses shied away, but had
    given good evidence during the inquest. My sister lived in fear, because she was trailed by the same
    killer for quite a while. These are very weighty issues. It is important that we pay a lot of attention to
    the issues of witnesses. We will not be getting anywhere if we do not put the issue of witness on top of
    our list.

    ReplyDelete
  11. They watch their news and admire the American system of governance and are continually asking themselves why not Kenya?

    xxx

    Oh, poor Kenyans and their DELUSIONS!

    If you want the American system, you must FIRST learn how to PRINT A USELESS paper and give a Kenyan in "exchange" for his coffee which he has worked like a donkey to produce.

    On a more, more, more serious note, the idea that Africa can have a democracy in the PRESENT SOCIAL CONDITIONS, is the GREATEST DELUSION in HUMAN history.

    And, we have news for you. The more the Africans try it, the more they will sink in ANARCHY and UTTER CONFUSION.

    At the end of these experiments, we shall end up with TYRANNY just to keep some peace of the grave.

    As a matter of fact, those who are running the show are laughing like hell as Africans run helter skelter like headless chickens in their DELUSIONAL and CHILDISH "democratic" experiments.

    Anyway, we leave to enjoy:

    Revolt Ain't A Revolution

    http://is.gd/dmgjTq

    ReplyDelete
  12. Chris,

    There is that kaobscure oo owned blog where phil has a safe haven. I left the moment they started coining "Afadharization of Raila". The argument was, that though raila is a corrupt and inept leader, he is not the worst wolf in the pack. That doctrine was quickly adopted as the "mantra" everytime someone pointed at raila's fault.
    As long as we have kenyans with this kind of warped mentality, we will forever remain under the spell of the raila's, mudavadi's, kibaki's, kenyatta's etc names that we have had in the corridors of power since the 50's.

    The Oracle has Spoken

    ReplyDelete

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