Commentary By Leo Odera Omolo

The impending general elections and the forthcoming ICC trials at the Hague are two sets of weighty subjects which are likely to produce dreadful and professional liars in the same way and manner similar to those five witnessed decades ago during the trial of the famous Kapenguria Six in 1953.

Many not worthy mentioned and hire witnesses have emerged in recent months, some of them suspected to have been bribed to falsely manufacture late and afterthought testimonies incriminating the Prime Minister Raila Odiga with the 2007/2008 post election violence.

There is a lot of similarity to the current on-going well orchestrated anti multiple accusation and allegations, by anti-Raila elements within our nation’s political class, which are aimed at denying “Agwambo” birth and constitutional rights and entitlement Raila’s to succeed President Kibaki upon his retirement.

For those of us who have been here for longer than seven decades Raila’s opponents in their desperate effort to pin him down appeared have erroneously deployed the same crude tactics similar in fashion, style and manner in then scale the colonial authorities in Kenya had hired witnesses who testified in the Kapenguria Trial of the six linking our founding President the late Jomo Kenyatta with criminal offences of organizing and managing the Mau Mau rebellion
The perpetrators and manufacturers of these falsehoods knew it pretty well that what they had told the trial colonial judge at Kapenguria were false and pack of lies, but for their lust for money, they shamelessly testified and gave false testimonies purely for economic gains.

No wonder five years later in 1959, the late Rawson Mbogua Macharia, the key witness for the crown came forward to swear an affidavit disowning and repudiating his testimonies at the famous Kapenguria Six trial.

The garland Kenyan nationalists whose lives were at stake at Kapenguria were headed by Jomo Kenyatta, Paul Joseph Ngei, Bildad Kaggia, Rachard Achieng’ Oneko, Kungu Karumba, Fred Kubai.

Some of us who have been following Kenyatta’s personal history and lifestyle from the year 1948 can honestly testify that Kenyatta had nothing to do with the Mau Mau rebellion nor was he aware f its existence. Men like Fred Kubai, Bildad Kaggi,Dedan Mugo knew something, though not directly involved but not Kenyatta. In fact at one time the former President joined hands with African Christian Bishop in the Mt. Kenyatta region and strongly condemned and denounced Mau Mau activities and its oathings a few weeks before his arrest and detention on the night of October 20,1952. This particular date is so significant because it coincided with the declaration of the state of emergency by the then governor Evelyn Baring.

Macharia eventually paid so dearly for his crime when he was goaled into jail for 18 months after being found guilty on a charge of perjury. Fortunately or unfortunately when Kenyatta was released after completing hi seven year jaile5ece with yard labor and years of eng placed in restriction camps in various remote places in Northern Kenya, the founding President came face to face with Rawson Mbogua Macharia who became his immediate neighbor at Gatundu rural home, though the two remained as no good friends for the rest of their life time, though Kenyatta in his fatherly heart had preached and taught us to embrace he spirit of forgiveness, but not to forget, Macharia remained in political limbo and lived as pauper and led a squalid life next to the home of an excessively wealthy family of Jomo Kenyatta.

The story of Maharia is still very fresh in the minds of level minded Kenyans and should serve as a deterrent to those hell-bent on making false and concocted testimonies against other fellow Kenyans. To desist from engaging on such not so honorable and respectable exercises which are tan amounting to betrayal doing so .The ma end up paying the prices for their heinous actions the same way the Biblical Judas of Iscariots and Rawson Macharia of Kenya.

I am writing this comment because I was recently taken back when I read stories in the newspaper column that some not very upright Kenyans who were desperately looking for the way how they could take what they called fresh evidence to the Hague in Netherlands that could link the Prime Minister with criminal offences committed by other people who incited other Kenyans to slaughter and butcher one another in the aftermath of the post-election violence.

Of course, these are the modern day Macharias. Such people must be told that they should tread carefully even if the have been paid handsomely to save the neck of their kin and kins facing ICC trials on a fee.

It is also imperative to remind the anti-Raila that ”Agwambo” has two prominent distinguished constituencies in this country. The Raila Odinga constituency are the people. His overzealous and near fanatic supporter would always vote for him no matter how one succeeded in mad slinging him.

The second constituency comprises those who hate Raila Odinga. No matter how good he has performed and carried out his Prime Minister’s office work. No matter how hard “Agwambo” work in a concerted effort to delivery the goods to the electorate and even in solving the problems of individual families in dire need of assistance.

Many greenhorns and political novices appeared to have turned Raila Odinga their punching bags, but this is to the chagrins of the silent millions of Kenyans who valued the work being done by the Prime Minister and have held him in the highest esteem against his fellow competitors and presidential aspirants.

Raila Odinga is not a corrupt leader as he is being portrayed to be by his detractors and hired political mercenaries acting at the behest of his cowardice rivals who appeared to be suffering from crisis of confidence after failing to articulate their individuals’ policies and those of their makeshift political parties and amorphous G7-tribal alliance.

I am glad that after failing to convince the Kenyan voters of by providing them with agendas of what they intended to do for Kenyans if they are vote in resorting to singing some old lyrics o the late 1950s by the late John Mwale and Isaya Mwinamo Both talented guitarists/musicians were from Tiriki in Vihiga dstrict Western Province, some of the songs which obviously are close to hurling insults to “Agwambo” and clearly amounted to the hate speeches, which are prohibited by the law of the land, and only time will as to who has the interest of Kenyan people at heart.

The presidential race is still widely open, and only require those panicking about”Agwambo soaring popularity need only to change tacts and resort to issues oriented campaign in place of hurling abuses.

Kenyans are very much aware that every tricks in the books were being placed on ‘Agwambo path and route to State House . It is no longer the game of foolhardy and Kenyans areno mnore simple spectators, but would soon ensure that every presidential aspirant who sowed the seed of discord can only harvest what he had sown when the game come to a finale halt.

Ends