Who The Hell is Ben Mulwa?

A recent poll carried out by Nakuru-based Smart Octopus Limited on Kenya's possible next president had a shocker. It featured a name that nobody seems to have heard of. Ben Mulwa (pictured). And yet clearly 4% of Kenyans have heard of the name and would have voted for the man if elections were to be held today.
The percentage may seem small but the interesting thing is that Mulwa beat well known politician Martha Karua (3%) in the poll.

Let me shift to the old Kanu mode for a moment because plenty of old school guys must be pretty puzzled now and getting more so even as they read this.

Nani huyu Mulwa. Natoka wapi?

Where has this man been carrying out his campaigns? What political rallies are these that the press did not cover? Who licensed them?

Folks stuff that we have been discussing here for a very long time is coming to pass right before our very eyes. This is an early and clear sign that when it comes to the fourth president of the republic of Kenya, you can only ignore rookies and nobodies at your own peril.

This blogger is still doing plenty of digging to find out exactly who this Ben Mulwa is, but for now we shall focus on what he has done to land on the latest opinion poll for the presidency in 2012.

The man has entered the opinion polls exclusively via Facebook. (Old school: Hio nini?). Yes we have heard the old worn out tale many times; Kenyans are not on the web, the masses have no idea what the World Wide Web is and so it is a waste of time campaigning on the net for any political office.

Really?

Let me take you back for a minute to the disputed 2007 presidential general elections. Those who were Kumekucha regulars must have been rather surprised at the influence this humble little blog seemed to have on public opinion. Actually there is a very simple explanation. The 2007 general elections were the first in Kenya’s history where Kenyans in the diaspora ended up being a major force. You will remember that leading presidential contenders like Raila Odinga and Kalonzo Musyoka made several trips abroad to meet Kenyans living mostly in Western countries. These are the Kenyans who have remitted record sums of money back home so much so that these remittances are now the top foreign exchange earner in the country. Many of those Kenyans were naturally very active on the web and many chose Kumekucha as their main blog in the 2007 campaigns. ODM and Raila Odinga cashed in big on this trend. What happened is that these opinion leaders influenced Kenyan politics right up to the grassroots level. With tools like cell phones and text messages the transfer was quick, efficient and in real time. By the time PNU strategists realized what was happening it was too late.

But even before that American President Barrack Obama used social media extensively and it was one of his formidable political weapons. My political contacts in the United States now tell me that the president still maintains close contact with his social media network and they will no doubt play a major role in his re-election bid.

Bottom line, what Ben Mulwa is doing is not new.

But the question that is on everybody’s mind is what has he done differently on social media? A fair question because there are a number of other would-be presidential candidates and actual presidential hopefuls using social media for their campaigns. We didn’t hear their names in the opinion poll.

In my view the reasons for Mulwa’s success thus far is that he started early and his message has been very consistent. He has been telling Kenyans that we need a clean break from the past and that is why they need to seriously consider his candidature. Most of the other presidential candidates on Facebook have been hesitant to announce their real intentions, fearing to do so too early. Admittedly in politics timing is everything. But Mulwa apparently did not have that baggage and has been discussing his presidential agenda on a one to one basis with a wide cross section of Kenyans. And more importantly he has ridden on the wave of angry Kenyans we have been talking about here in Kumekucha who are looking for a clean break with the past. Currently Mulwa seems to be more visible than most when it comes to the rookie candidate Kenyans are looking for to teach the political class a lesson.

Read full results of the Smart Octopus Limited poll HERE.

Why Won’t Miguna Miguna Go Quietly?

Former advisor to PM Raila Odinga Mr Miguna Miguna has refused to leave office quietly and instead is going out kicking and screaming and causing lots of trouble. And most of his “kicks” seem to be aimed directly at his former boss.

So much so that some observers believe that his suspension may have already turned into a permanent sacking. Either that or the man may have read the writing on the wall and realized that he was unlikely to be re-instated and has therefore opted for the Samson option.

Still those who know Miguna well disagree and say that his reaction was predictable and that a better and wiser manager would have anticipated it and taken the necessary precautions to prevent this fall out that cannot be good for a man seeking the presidency in 2012.

The most famous Miguna photo.

The clearest signal thus far that the man’s “kicks” had hit the PM emerged last weekend when a section of ODM MPs on Sunday warned Miguna against “using abusive language” against the PM. The MPs said that Luo Nyanza legislators would meet soon to discuss this unbecoming conduct. See story HERE.

Miguna’s most telling “kick” must have been a long emotional tirade where he accused his former boss of “failing to apologize after dismissing him in a most inhumane way.”

“Unfortunately, he has failed or refused to do so after one whole week. This is neither honourable nor humane. A man who cannot apologise and correct his mistakes has no business pretending to be the symbol of positive change for this country,” Miguna said in a statement.

The former advisor to the PS says that he has sacrificed his professional career, life and even family for Raila Odinga and he was therefore shocked and hurt by the manner his case was handled.

This is exactly the kind of rhetoric that would cause rival PNU strategists and insiders to break into song and dance while doing a jig or two at the same time. Indeed had the support to the PM been of a less emotional nature one could have predicted that Miguna will turn into a chief campaigner for PNU in the run up to 2012. Those who understand Kenyan politics know that just the thought of such a thing is laughable, hilariously so. Besides Miguna may have burnt all his bridges with his youth-winger-take-no-prisoner-politicking when he was working for the PM. His behaviour earned him such hatred in the PNU camp that no serious negotiations would have taken place between his party and PNU in his presence.

Interestingly in his first reaction to his sacking Miguna blamed the ugly head of impunity and vowed to fight against it to the end. It is now clear that the Canadian qualified lawyer has classified his former boss in that camp of practitioners of impunity.

But Miguna has done more than just issue statements with barbs targeted at Raila. He has gone ahead and filed a case against his dismissal.

He has sued Attorney-General Amos Wako and the permanent secretary in the Office of the Prime Minister, Dr Mohammed Isahakia, demanding at least half of his Sh584,000 a month salary plus allowances and reinstatement of his family medical cover as a first step. He also wants the High Court to lift the suspension.

He is asking the court to compel Dr Isahakia to reinstate his salary, allowances and benefits, which were stopped when he was sent home on August 4 over gross misconduct.

He also wants the court to restore an official driver, armed body guard and security at his house in Nairobi. Miguna says in his suit that he is entitled to not less than half of his salary, full allowances and benefits pending the outcome of the case against him.

He adds that he has been wrongfully locked out of his office and cannot access personal belongings. Not only that, his life has been exposed to risk due to the nature of his office.

In the suit filed at the High Court in Nairobi through lawyer Nelson Havi, Miguna argues that Dr Isahakia and Mr Wako have no power to suspend him because he was a presidential appointee. The decision to suspend him, he claims, was made arbitrarily and should be nullified.

Dr Isahakia did not give him a warning letter detailing the claims against him nor give him a chance to defend himself. He accuses the PS of leaking his suspension letter to the media more than 24 hours before it was delivered to him, instead of recalling him from leave and giving him the letter in a dignified and humane manner.

Every writer has to be careful about what they say concerning a matter that is before the courts but the truth is that Miguna’s demands in his suit are the kind that give the Luo community a bad name and the PNU camp will be busy right now repeating old worn out tales about how the Luo love perks and feeling important so much so that they will easily sacrifice everything else including remuneration for a big office, driver, bodyguard etc.

But even so, one cannot help but sympathize with the man. It seems that Moi dismissal methods have been put to good use in the political party that some Kenyans are looking up to, to bring us to a new era. I guess old habits die hard.

Read earlier Miguna Miguna analysis