With the smell of political blood still suffocating our political airspace, some of the 10th Parliament MPs are spoiling for another VIP scalp after Kimunya. Trust Kenyan politicians to abuse and use words selfishly to suit their narrow interests. Discretion is the new buzzword among the Grand coalition cabinet ministers. Borrowing Kimunya's script by defending themselves that they acted within prescribed powers, Uhuru and Kajwang are denying any form of impropriety in their actions.
Two wrongs never made a right and so comparing whose crime between Uhuru and Kajwang is bigger amounts to splitting hairs. In Kajwang’s book he overruled his immigration officers in issuing work permits for jobs whose qualifications can be sourced locally. True, the buck stops with the minister as he proudly gloats but he must come out and unambiguously explain if in the process of acting as he did no law was broken. Failure to do so amounts to impunity which is the singular unique characteristic defining this administration.
Uhuru Kenyatta is said to have substituted names for nominations forwarded to him by respective political parties by those of his personal and political liking. Alright, it may be lawful for the local government minister to nominate up to a third of councilors. But the question is did he do it proportionately as per the composition of the elected two thirds? Well, you cannot fail to see the temptation then to tinker with figures during the politically volatile January and February of this year. What of ODM’s numerical superiority at the civic level threatening to upstage and frustrate PNU's power from above? For whatever it was Jomo Jr. must own up to his actions and if he is found to have acted outside his mandate no donning of tribal or party colours will wash. He must carry the cross no matter the weight.
Hare hunting foxes
Having fanned the first embers of political heat, the domino effect of Kimunya’s fall is threatening to come back to claim Martha Karua’s political scalp. The Iron Lady may have played it smart by sticking to the law and prodding his political lapdog Mungatana to expose Kimunya, but her star may be dimmed with the predictable cocked Cocker commission’s report. In all likelihood Kimunya will be exonerated of wrong doing. And that will mark the beginning of fierce intra-Gema wars for political supremacy in tandem with Kibaki succession.
As they say sweet revenge is a menu better served cold. Martha must pray that the Cocker’s commission find Kimunya VERY GUILTY. Otherwise the other 4Ks may just team up to deflate her political balloon. Her intentions of playing above the fray and reproach politics in fighting corruption may be a noble gesture. But in Kenya's hyper-ethnic and regional based politics, her heroics may be turned against her as unforgivable betrayal of one of her own.
The adage of running with the hare to hunt with the foxes couldn’t haven’t have been more apt. It is very ironical but surely not naive to tie Martha’s political future with Amos Kimunya’s fate. It won’t surprise anybody to see the end turning into payback time. Martha’s fate apparently is out of her hands but instead lies with the powers that be. She remains safe if she is their pick otherwise the future bodes ill for her. Only time will tell whether she enriched her political CV or unwittingly committed political suicide in advance.
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Infectious Selective Censor and Political Suicide Posted: July 14th, 2008, 4:30pm EDT