They
say what goes round comes around. Former Internal security minister
George Saitoti was an expert at cooling off public interest on issues
where a cover up was imminent. So much so that you would predict with a
great deal of accuracy exactly what he was going to say;
"It would
be wrong to speculate at this juncture and I urge wananchi to be
patient while thorough investigations are carried out... blah blah."
Well
the same tactics were used to cover his own heinous murder and to add
insult to injury the report into the inquiry on his death was released
by the Kibaki administration at the height of the 2013 political
campaigns. That should tell any intelligent person that there was
mischief in the timing meaning that the government must have been
involved in the murder. Few Kenyans even noticed that the verdict was
pilot error. My heart goes out to the families of the gallant pilots of
that chopper because we are now being told that they were incompetent
and dead people can hardly defend themselves can they?
Some
Kenyans who in this digital age are accustomed to listening to the news
and repeating what was said like parrots and without using the great
tool the Almighty gave them that is between their ears are anxiously
telling others NOT to speculate about the death of Senator Mutula
Kilonzo. Some are even threatening others and insinuating that there is a
law against speculation. These "bongo lalas" are playing right into the
hands of those keen on covering up their tracks. When people are told
to wait, time passes, important details are forgotten and evidence is
obliterated. Months from now when the issue will be brought up again
Kenyans will have moved on and that will be the end of the story. And as
Waititu would say; hio ndio style yetu (that is our way of doing things
in the banana republic).
It is important to realize that thinking
for yourself does not cause sheering pain in the brain. Indeed the
brain is like a muscle where you stop exercising it and it will go all
"flabby" and continuously ineffective. This is one of the reasons why
reading habits are critical to the development of a person, irrespective
of their age. Crossword puzzles are excellent too. But that is a story
for another day.
There is nothing wrong with the public asking
questions about the strange death of an important public figure in the
reform agenda of the banana republic. Especially when we know that those
reforms are being fought very strongly by some very powerful people.
People whose gravy train is going to be greatly compromised by some of
the "inconvenient" laws in our new constitution.
We know that
people who are teetotalers (like Mutula was) and in perfectly good
health do not just suddenly die in their sleep. kwani Mutula was as old
and sick as Jomo Kenyatta was in 78? We know that when people foam in
the mouth it is one of the classic signs of poisoning. We also know that
the government pathologist who messed up with evidence from the Saitoti
crash site is the same person who took vomit samples from the late
Senator's house on Saturday (so we should prepare ourselves for
anything). We also know the names of the people who are set to benefit
from the death of the late senator. Indeed two of those individuals can
be linked to convenient sudden deaths of others in the past. There is a
clear pattern that I discuss in great detail in my latest raw notes.
In
the old days the Kenyan public were sold all kinds of stories to
explain away murder and there is no reason to expect different in
Mutula's case. Probably the most hilarious such story was that of the
Robert Ouko suicide theory. Government officials told Kenyans with a
straight face that they had conclusive evidence that Ouko committed
suicide. Taking into consideration the facts that were available to the
public even then, swallowing this theory would have meant that Ouko
broke his leg, shot himself and then set his body ablaze. You can't beat
that kind of determination to die can you? And in those days in the
banana republic you could be picked up by the special branch for
contradicting the government position on such a sensitive national
matter.
Kenyans should NOT tire of asking questions about Mutula's
death and those questions MUST be asked now. In the event that the post
mortem shows that he died of a cardiac arrest, Kenyans should NOT be
naive enough to end the issue there. We know that heart attacks can be
induced on perfectly healthy people. It has been done many times even in
Kenya (including very recently indeed when a very well known public figure very conveniently died just before the general elections).
Just two more quick things I want to say today.
Let
us mourn Mutula, a great son of Kenya and console the family for their
devastating loss but even as we do so Kenyans need to be aware of the
fact that extremely powerful political forces on the ground are busy
plotting to make sure that neither Kalonzo Musyoka nor Harun Mwau end up
taking over Mutula's senatorial seat. These forces know that thye have
considerable support from the voters on the ground. Nothing new about
that the secret weapon they plan to use will surprise some and delight
many others. Details in my latest raw notes.
Lastly vetting of the
cabinet secretaries starts tomorrow and must end within 14 days,
according to the constitution. Some members of the opposition are busy
gathering "evidence" to embarrass the nominees (whom they know will
comfortably pass the vetting process thanks to the tyranny of numbers).
This "evidence" will come from members of the public. Hope you catch my
drift.
See intimate controversial profile of Mutula Kilonzo (not recommended for those who sanitize the dead)
Ruto jitters: Is Raila really back? | Kenya news
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Sunday, April 28, 2013
How Mutula Was Murdered
Why did the late Mutula keep wild lions at his Maanzoni home? Here he is seen feeding them.
No death of a politician has caused so much shock and anxiety in Kenya since the assassination of JM Kariuki in 1975. Even the death of Vice president Kijana Wamalwa in a London hospital in 2003 did not have quiet the same impact as the sudden and very unexpected death of Makueni senator Mutula Kilonzo who went to bed and failed to wake up Saturday morning.
It also needs to be pointed out that even in life the late Senator Mutula Kilonzo was a man full of surprises.
He first came to the limelight as one of former President Moi's most trusted and accomplished lawyers and went on to build a reputation for being a very conservative and strong defender of KANU evils during the Moi era. How he re-invented himself successfully to be one of the most consistent and vocal voices for reforms and changes in Kenya is well worth studying and analyzing. And not just for PR experts and spin doctors.
In his long and distinguished career as a lawyer Mutula also built a reputation for never losing cases that he defended. There are those who will be quick to point out that he was involved in corruption and questionable deals but then the question would be if it was just a matter of paying off judges why didn't other lawyers do the same and win a reputation to rival Mutula's? The bottom line is that nobody can dispute the fact that this man was one of the sharpest legal minds ever produced on these shores.
Kenyans are a strange lot and will usually be quick to sanitize the dead so that any student of history looking to create a true picture and profile of a dead public figure will quickly learn that they all die saints in Kenya. Alas, Mutula's weaknesses are very well documented in this blog including the fact that during his entire tenure in parliament all his salary and earnings went straight to the Kenya Revenue Authority to settle a colossal long standing tax bill he had with the taxman. In addition to that his fondness for pretty female ankles was legendary.
Still the odd thing here is that I find it difficult to dwell on his weaknesses and misdeeds and most who write about Mutula will find themselves in exactly the same position. I have asked myself why, even as I struggled to write this piece. Twice I read it through and failed to recognize the usually tough and very critical Kumekucha who always ignores the pact the Kenyan public have made with their dead public figures to speak no evil. At the end of my revisions I was unable to add the kind of venom that helps bring out the truth about a person.
I suspect the reason is that Mutula was too rare a breed in Kenyan politics. He always spoke his mind without fear of raffling feathers and he always stuck to his position on matters no matter what kind of pressure he came under. That just doesn't happen in Kenyan politics and no other politician has taken that path.
In my raw notes I currently have a series on Mutula running from an in depth investigation into what may have caused his death and his possible enemies to little known facts (including the very sensitive case involving President Moi and a scandal where he managed to "kill" a planned international expose using his legal and negotiation skills). They make extremely fascinating reading and will greatly help anybody to understand what has just happened and possible reasons as to why it may have happened.
Indeed many will find good reason to analyze the life of senator Mutula Kilonzo in the next few weeks and months and even in many years and decades to come.
Hardly surprising because when all is said and done this man was different and that is why too many Kenyans across the political divide are anxiously awaiting official word as to his cause of death and will be appalled if it is indeed true that somebody somewhere cut short the senator's life.
Fare thee well Mutula, great son of Kenya.
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