HOW UHURU KENYATTA BLUNDERS BY CONDUCTING HARAMBEE FOR ILLEGAL SQUATTERS WHO HAVE VANDALIZED THE COUNTRY’’S MOST IMPORTANT WATER TOWER.

Commentary By Leo Odera Omolo

The much highlighted Harambee fundraising against government eviction exercise in Mau Forest was full of hypocrisy and miscalculation. It will go down in history as a big political blunder by the organizers, and those who presided over the function.

Kenyans have read malice as well as political undertone in this camp.
Mr Kenyatta, particularly, deserves no sympathy, especially when taking a note from his reported remarks, that genuine leaders must be sympathetic to the suffering of the less fortunate Kenyans, children and elderly people.. Yes, our Finance Minister, Uhuru Kenyatta , who was the guest of honor, made a “hefty” donation of Kshs 350,000!

Could the man whose family is reported to be owning tracks of land, which is estimated to be twice the size of Nyanza Province, be taken as honest and sympathetic to the suffering Mau settlers?  Certainly not!! He is just out for political mischief and gimmicks!!

Kenyans are very much aware that the Kenyatta family alone, whose current head is Mr Uhuru Muigai Kenyatta, own the largest trucks of prime land in Kenya, which some experts have estimated to be twice the size of the present Nyanza Province.

If Mr Kenyatta is a true nationalist, who cares for other unfortunate Kenyans like those now facing eviction from Mau Forest Complex, then why can’t he and his family slash out a small portion of this land, and have it dished out to the displaced Mau Squatters? At least 10,000 hectares, which is just an iota of what the Kenyatta family owns, could do. And may he may in the process, help the government resettle those evicted out of Mau water catchment areas.

Level headed Kenyans are aware of the who is who in the list of speakers. There is even no need naming them individually in this column. But truly speaking, it was the credible list of most notorious land grabbers in this country.

The late President Mzee Jomo Kenyatta, who is the father of Uhuru Kenyatta, spent most of his lifetime living like a pauper in Europe. Upon his return to Kenya in 1948 he got sunken into the murky water of anti-colonialism. He had no time of genuinely making wealth, nor did he have time for making money through genuine hard work and sweat, to acquire the largest trucks of prime land in this country.

Of course, every level minded Kenyan is very much aware that these trucks of land were either acquired fraudulently, or through coercion, or shamelessly grabbed using taxpayer’s money, and even for free. Let the Kenyatta family share some part of it with the suffering Kenyans.
So if Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta is genuinely sympathetic to the unfortunate Kenyans who have been evicted out of the Forest land, he should lead in exercising his political dynamism and magnanimity by offering to settle some of the Mau Forest victims at his family estates in Laikipia, Thika, Mwatate in Taita district or elsewhere where he owns land.

To Uhuru Kenyatta family 10,000 or 20,000 hectares would be just like peanut. Let him show the way, and stop cheating Kenyans through unworkable political expediency.

I am only sorry, and I regret that I had vigorously campaign for Mr. Uhuru Kenyatta in 2002, due to the influence of the retired President Daniel Arap Moi. I did so because I had no prior knowledge and experience about the young Mr. Kenyatta, whom at first I thought would be a dynamic leader, like his father. But I have since discovered that this man is an empty cell, hell bent on cheap propaganda and outmoded tribal alliances. His kind of politics, is so dangerous to peaceful co-existence of all the Kenyan communities.

Uhuru Kenyatta has since stopped too low and exhibited lack of foresight, and has sunk deep into “Kaka Sungura Mjanja” kind of cheap politics. The PNU members would even be safe in the hands of Prof. George Saitoti ,while people of Central Province would gain a lot of sympathy and respect under the honesty leadership of Madam Martha Karua.

It a big shame that some of our young leaders are easily getting trapped in political demagoguery simply because of their lust for the Presidency of this country. They are looking for cheap publicity for the purpose of gaining political mileage over their rivals.

Uhuru Kenyatta, Najib Balala, Kalonzo Musyoka, Mutula Kilonzo, William Ruto, Franklin Bett are all members of the coalition government. They all sit in the cabinet, which is the supreme governing organ in the coalition government, and were all part and parcel of the collective decision and all resolutions relevant to Mau eviction.

None of them had registered their objections, even when Parliament debated the issue. But their dishonesty ia now apparent for all to see, as seize on this unfortunate environmental calamity as an opportunity to cut the Prime Ministry Raila Odinga to size. This is what the Englishmen call “Politics of deceits”. But they will pay a high price for this kind of dishonesty, because the public are very much aware of where the truth lies..

An example of total ignorance and political mediocrity is the recent remarks attributed to the Cherangany MP Joshua Kutuny, who pointed out that Rift Valley MPs have the number and were contemplating moving a substantive motion of vote of no confidence against the Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, in Parliament over the Mau Forest Controversy.

According to the existing law, Mr Odinga is one of the principal partners in the grand coalition government. Therefore, a vote of no confidence on him is a vote of no confidence in the entire coalition government. It could also mean the dissolution of the 10th Parliament and all the MP would go home and face an uphill task of defending their seats afresh. I am sure no MP would dare vote against Mr. Odinga. May be a few, whose pockets are still lined up with money accrued from the “Maize scandals”, would be able to sustain the heat of the electioneering campaign, if it is called so soon after 2007 and before 2012.

It is high time the Speaker of Parliament, Hon Ken Marende, the man whom I highly respect, works out a “special education vote”, so that some of our legislators can be sponsored for courses through adult education institutions, to learn elementary know-how about the parliamentary democracy system of government and its constitutionality’s..

This is very essential and urgent, because some of these lousy MPs could one day land this country into unprecedented constitutional crisis, which could eventually land Kenya into another distasteful condition and political upheaval.

I am sure for certain that those making endless irresponsible statements against the Prime Minister would not survive if an election was called today. The majority of these chest-thumping political novices would be on tarmac, never to see the inside of Parliament again.

Mr. Odinga has a clean track record of lifelong fighting for the less fortunate Kenyans. Enlightened Kenyans will not be willing to entertain the idea whereby sons and daughter of wealthy land grabbers, and those dunk with ill-gotten wealth, out to furnish his good name and image for political expediency.

Personally, I have no quarrels with the Kalenjin MPs, and even with those seeking to become the next President of this country through short-cut and deceitful politics. Some of the current Kalenjin MPs are my best friends. But I strongly abhor the behaviors of those who want to offload their own failure on other people. Instead of noisemaking and cheap political slogans, they should have made use of their influence and presence in the coalition government to bargain for a better life for their people.

Enlisting the support of those whose track record s are laden with scandals is just rubbing Kenyans the wrong way. They must stop antagonizing Mr.Odinga by taking him for ransom through party allegiance. Let us all honestly join hands and save Mau Forest
Bravo Mr.Odinga, the Wananchi, even in the interior parts of Kalenjin regions and domains are with you. Save Mau for millions of Kenyans and beyond.

Ends
leooderaomolo@yahoo.com