Just a week ago, Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana announced his presidential bid come 2022.
The Governor’s announcement brought a lot of reactions from the Kenyan netizens, main among the reaction that someone outside the usual suspects would be offering themselves for the top seat, some with a proven track record of fighting reforms against Moi’s era and as a highly acclaimed two-term gubernatorial regime.
Makueni Governor has already declared himself the “Wanjiku candidate”, in one stroke both taking away the thunder from self-proclaimed “hustler” DP William Ruto, and moving away from the “dynasties” represented by Uhuru Kenyatta, Gideon Moi, and Raila Odinga
Despite his carefully constructed narrative, there is a crucial aspect of his record people should check. His record includes the years he served in the Mwai Kibaki administration as a Cabinet minister and as an adviser to the president. During this time, according to his former colleagues in civil society, the “parleyed into electoral politics and easily won the Makueni parliamentary seat back in 2002 election and was subsequently appointed a Minister for Environment in the Narc government.”
His peers note that Kibwana seemed to have been effortlessly socialized into the mouse Operandi of the status quo and left the principles he stood for while working in the civil society trenches.
There is however a lot of situation that calls into question his judgment and commitment to the cause of reform. For instance, he stuck with Kibaki even after his regime was as kleptocratic, if not worse than of Daniel Moi.
During the regime, the was the Anglo Leasing scam in which the Governor’s colleagues in the Cabinet were implicated and when John Githogo, who was appointed to lead the anti-corruption war, had instead forced into exile for doing what he was appointed to do.
Through all this, Governor Kibwana stood firm with Kibaki. Not even the raiding of Standard Group offices, the theft of the 2007 election, or even adulteration of the constitution was enough to prod him into taking a stand. His former comrades even became his enemies – he even called for the arrest of Kalonzo Musyoka and Raila Odinga and be charged with treason over Artur Brother’s saga, which we all know was the government’s plan.
It must be said that leaving his principle for the sake of his position, Kibwana wasn’t alone, the governor was treading in a well-trodden path.
In the words of an American scholar, Robert Ingersoll, “If you want to find out what a man is to the bottom, give him power.” He added, “any man can stand adversity — only a great man can stand prosperity”. What is happening in Kenya’s political arena testifies to this fact.
Let us go back to the time of the former scourge of Kanu, Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi, showing the public his true priorities during a debate in parliament on the President’s salary in December 2006. Kituyi categorically said that economic importance was to flow from the top-down, beginning with the political class.
According to him, the improvement of the economy was justified by increased pay for the Head of State and Legislatures. Deputy President William Ruto by the interjected to remind him: “In 1997 when I came to this House [Dr. Kituyi] could not afford to hire a car, but he now flies in a helicopter.”
- Movie star the Rock ranks as Instagram’s most valuable influencer
- Kenyans banned from EU borders due to increased COVID-19 cases
- Speaker Beatrice Elachi and Nairobi MCAs Spend Night At City Hall
- KCB Customers To Receive Cash Benefits Should They Contract Covid-19
Dr. Kituyi’s moral descent gave a reflection of many other former oppositions and civil society luminaries like the current governor of Meru, Kiraitu Murungi who tried to get Githongo to “go slow” on the corruption cases, and Narc Kenya Party Leader, a former staunch defender of the press, who after getting to power, file over 15 cases in court against the very same press she fought for its freedom
Voters should remember this history when not only evaluating Kibwana’s candidacy but any other candidate interested in a political seat. Such evaluation is not just about looking at achievements but also includes an attempt to predict how the candidate would behave once in power.
The original story was done by the Star publication
