Sagana State Lodge. It’s somewhere out there in Nyeri. A rich colonial history. I don’t know who owns it, but it doesn’t matter. What matters is what was said there by the ODM Leader and the President back in February, about a month after Kenya had undergone a wave of bloodletting unseen in Kenya since independence. As the two protagonists met in that secluded lodge, they’d left behind an anxious nation that was literally begging for a way out of the political impasse that had engulfed it for weeks. Both of them had haggled with their lieutenants for a softening of position, and both had been held hostage by the intransigence of their communities. Yet both realized that for Kenya to work together, some very serious negotiations had to be slapped on the table and difficult decisions made.

I revisit the meeting that took place at Sagana between Kibaki and Odinga because you won’t understand the road-map to 2012 until you come to grips with what went on at the state lodge, an edifice given to Kenya by the Brits. Impeccable sources have confirmed that the meeting at the lodge was like the meeting Jomo Kenyatta held with Moi in Gatundu before the founding father of the nation left to meet his Maker. Historical accounts have it that it was in Gatundu that the late founding father promised to pass on the torch to Moi if Moi signed on to protecting Mama Ngina and the children, the wealth and the wider Agikuyu community. Moi, being the humble and cunning Vice President that he was, accepted the terms of the old man. And so Mzee Jomo Kenyatta beat back the Ngoroko and other nefarious Mt Kenya organizations that sought to deny Moi the throne.

Fast forward. After the unprecedented death and mayhem of December and January, it became obvious to the thought-leaders in Central Province that the community had veered too far off track and was marching away from the rest of Kenya. The wise men in the community therefore started seeking ways to make amends. To these wise men, there was no way to make amends without making the Prime Minister central to their schemes. It is in this light that President Kibaki and the ODM Leader sat at Sagana and drew the map right into 2012. What I can reveal is that the clamour to install the Prime Minister as an Agikuyu elder is a leaf out of the Sagana playbook. I can also reveal today that barring any unforeseen circumstances, the coalition President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga put together will ride on into 2012, or until those two gentlemen decide it’s time to implement the Sagana Plan. And by the time the Sagana Plan comes to fruition, the son of Kenya’s first Vice President will be the new President of Kenya. You can take that to the bank.

But it’s now clear that a section of the ODM coalition, especially members of Parliament from the South Rift, are very unhappy with the incremental rapprochement between the Big Two and the general realignments taking place on the political landscape. What our friends from this corner of the Rift Valley may be failing to take into account is the fact that the Prime Minister has in mind a coalition that brings Kenya together. A national coalition. He’s already a Luo elder. He’s an Arap Mibei. And soon he’ll be an Agikuyu elder. What you see emerging is the beginning of something that should have taken place right after independence…the birth of a nation. The fulfilment of The Mau Mau Prophecy. For forty five years we’ve been led by men who failed to create cohesion and understanding between us. Men who watched with glee, and even cashed in, as Kenyans fought Kenyans. That will change starting 2012, or sooner.

Given the significance of the Sagana Plan, it is now crucial for Kenyans to create a pathway to lasting peace. The fire and brimstone rhetoric that has characterised our discourse as a nation must now give way to development and honest healing. Of course there will be moments when we must shout like hell to correct a wrong, just like we did with Kimunya, but even such nuclear option moments must be conducted without attributing the sleaze of one man to an entire community.

Does that make sense? I think it does.

So as we look into the future, let’s be optimistic and proud of where the nation is going. The foundation of a stable and prosperous nation was laid at Sagana. Yes, this is a classic case of something good springing out of a truly desperate situation. The future is now ours to shape. We will only fail if we allow the squabbles and the disappointments of the years gone by to cloud our thinking.

Let’s all go to Sagana!

For Love of Country,

Sam O. Okello

– – –
Date: Sun, 13 Jul 2008 19:56:07 -0700
From: samokello@ . . .
Subject: The Sagana Factor

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SAM, SAM, SAM,

HERE WE GO AGAIN, SAM SINCE WHEN HAVE YOU STARTED TRUSTING KIKUYUS??. DO YOU KNOW THAT WITHOUT THE LUOS KIKUYUS WOULD HAVE HAD IT ALL?? WHO TOLD YOU THAT THEY HAVE FORGIVEN US??. THE ONLY WAY OUT IS KENYA TO HAVE A NEW WORKING CONSTITUTION. MUSEVENI. MUGABE, MOBUTU, KENYATTA, MOI, KIBAKI, SAID BARE, HEILISILASIA, ALL NIGERIAN DICTATORS, RAWLINGS, SADAT, GADAFFI etc THE LIST IS TOO LONG, ALL GRADUATED WITH DISTINCTIONS WHEN IT COMES TO COMMUNITY OR TRIBAL ELDERS. LOOK AT WHICH DIRECTIONS THEY TOOK THEIR COUNTRIES OR COMMUNITIES TO?.

WE AFRICANS WE CRY AGAINST DICTATORS AT THE SAME TIME WE MAKE THEM EVERY DAY. IT IS SAD THAT EVEN THE ELITES HAVE JOINED THE NON ELITES IN DOING THIS. WE SHOULD PRAY THAT THE YEAR 2012″ COMES WHEN KENYA IS HAVING A WORKING NEW CONSTITUTION THE REST WILL BE TAKEN CARE OF. ALL THE SUCCESFUL COUNTRIES HAVE MADE IT BECAUSE OF GOOD WORKING CONSTITUTION, MARK ME WELL NOT BECAUSE OF AN INDIVIDUAL. WE DO HAVE A LOT OF EINSTENS, or NEWTONS or, LEONARDO DA VINCI TYPE OF PEOPLE ALSO IN AFRICA TOO, but WHERE ARE THEY???.

Paul Nyandoto.

– – –
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:44:42 +0300
From: Paul Nyandoto
Subject: Vs: The Sagana Factor

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— On Mon, 7/14/08, Judy Miriga wrote:
Date: Monday, July 14, 2008, 8:57 AM

Sam,

Let the players tell the tale of Sagana Lodge. Let it come from the horses mouth. It will go down in History and people will judge them squarely. People will respond unequivocally rather than when it comes from third party it may take equivocal turn of event. It may be dismissed as mere rumours. That does not imply there shouldn’t be question marks.

Kenya is for Kenyans, Kanyans are now informed, it is no longer the days of the old The Civil Society is up and about. One man show is no deal. Kenyans have woken up from slamber and are getting out of slavery. Deal or No Deal, Kenya is destined to forge development for all irrespective of who is who. It will take a little while but it will never be the same again. The dew is drifting.

I am positive, because CHANGE is here, and CHANGE must BRING New ideological FRESH AIR. Air that can be breathed freely and enjoyed by all; since air, is that which cannot be bought, a Gift from God.

Good Day People.

Judy Miriga
USA

– – –
Date: Mon, 14 Jul 2008 07:31:34 -0700 (PDT)
From: Judy Miriga
Subject: Re: The Sagana Factor