WHY ODM MUST BE STOPPED !!!

|Onesmus Kilonzo

Recent developments on the political scene point to a possible fallout in the National Super Alliance (NASA), owing to disagreements emanating from the January 30th Raila Odinga ‘swearing-in’ that was missed by the other three principals.

Staunch Raila loyalists are convinced that Kalonzo Musyoka, Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetangula betrayed Raila when they failed to turn up for the oath. Indeed, they have ever since labelled the trio as cowards who are not worthy of leading Kenya.

But a closer scrutiny at Kenya’s political history shows that nothing could be further from the truth.

Though ‘bravery’ is a virtue much admired by many, Kenya’s political path is littered with ‘brave’ men and women who were outshone by those considered to be meek, humble, or even cowardly, and who went on to become Presidents of the Republic of Kenya.
For example, compared to Dedan Kimathi who was a Mau Mau general, Jomo Kenyatta was a ‘coward’ who is said to have even refused to take the Mau Mau oath. And while Kimathi spent most of his adult years in the extremely cold slopes of Mt. Kenya fighting the British, Jomo Kenyatta’s only reason for his arrest and detention is that he was just a victim of circumstances, in that he was chosen to be the leader of the Kenya African Union, the precursor of the Kenya African National Union.

Therefore, it can be argued that Kenyatta’s incalceration was not due to his bravery per se, but due to his position as leader of a party that was considered to be the biggest threat to the British rule in Kenya at the time.
Kenyans know what happened next: Kenyatta, who many believe was a Mau Mau traitor and colonial collaborator, was later released, while brave Kimathi was captured and hanged!

It did not end there.

During the time Moi was Vice-President, there was another brave Kalenjin by the name Jean Marie Seroney. While Moi was humble to the point of being called a coward by his detractors, Seroney was the brave warrior of the Kalenjin Nation.

A story is told about how a senior police officer even had the temerity of slapping Moi in the face, daring him to go and report the incident to whoever he (Moi) wished! Moi is said to have let the event pass. On the other hand, Seroney decided to stand up to Kenyatta’s tyranny, only to end up in detention and a miserable death in poverty.
Moi, despite his ‘cowardice’, later became President and ruled for a whole 24 years!

Then there was the case of Mwai Kibaki and Kenneth Matiba.

For many years, and especially during the time leading to the re-introduction of multi-party politics in Kenya, Kibaki earned the title ‘General Kiguoya’ (The Cowardly General) due to his perceived cowardice. While as Moi’s Vice-President, Kibaki even went as far as declaring that those who were advocating for the removal from power of the then ruling party KANU were day-dreamers. To attempt to remove Kanu from power, he said, was akin to a man threatening to cut a Mugumo tree with a razor blade! That is how far Kibaki was willing to go to declare his loyalty to Moi. Many were of the view that Kibaki did this to avoid antagonizing his boss, who would have thrown him into detention.

On the other hand, when duty called, Matiba was as brave as a lion. The man from Kiharu had the audacity to resign his ministerial post with his colleague Charles Rubia, and join the Opposition, an act that made Moi raving mad. The two were instantly thrown into detention.

Kibaki, on his part, safely bid his time until Section 2(A) of the Constitution was repealed to allow Kenya to revert to multi-party politics. Notably, the cowardly Kibaki had to wait until the coast was clear, as they say, to form his Democratic Party. Three General Elections later, Kibaki became President. Matiba the Hero, on the other hand, is still yet to recover from the wounds of his detention. This is despite the fact that he proved to all and sundry that he was a ‘Njamba’ (hero).

Alas, the irony of Kenyan politics!

I will not write about Uhuru and Ruto. That will be a topic for another day.

So, what is my point here? I am not trying to justify cowardice in politics. Nor am I trying to belittle the contributions of those brave sons of Kenya. Never.

My point is that in politics, a politician’s ‘bravery’ should be proven during election times. Simply put, a ‘brave’ politician should be able to convince as many people as possible to come out and vote. The politician is not a soldier fighting Al-Shabaab or any other enemy, and who should flex his muscles on a podium to declare that, ‘Look, I am the bravest of them all!’ Not at all! The bravery of a politicians should be measured by the number of votes he brings to the table – the more the votes, the braver that politician should be.

Because, in ideal situations, it is votes, and not brawn, that win elections. Rabble rousing should be left to the likes of Miguna Miguna!

In both 2013 and 2017, brave and audacious Kalonzo Musyoka put his political career on the line when he decided to support Raila Odinga for President. And he delivered beyond imagination – in both instances marshalling more than 85 per cent of the Lower Eastern voters behind Raila. And in both instances, many believe that the Raila-Kalonzo team won, only for their victory to be stolen from them.
It is, therefore, extremely disturbing for the Orange Democratic Movement’s top hierarchy and supporters to continue branding Kalonzo ‘a water melon’.

Kalonzo has already met his part of the political bargain with Raila and ODM, by delivering as promised. It is now time for Raila and ODM to return a hand to Kalonzo without resorting to petty excuses to renege on a Memorandum of Understanding that is already in public domain.

For Raila Odinga and ODM, it must be made clear that many Kenyans may now be tempted to believe that Raila’s presidential candidature is jinxed. Millions have already developed a voter fatigue for Raila. So, anyone thinking that he (Raila) should stand again in 2022, should think again and again. Trust is equally important – Raila should not be lumped together with the likes of Kibaki, who reneged on a MoU against Raila himself. Furthermore, antagonizing Kalonzo, Mudavadi and Wetangula may only lead to one thing – a drastically reduced voter numbers for Raila, and a possible retirement in infamy for the latter.

Raila Odinga should have evaded that trap of being a ‘permanent’ presidential contestant, and supported the Kalonzo, Mudavadi and Wetangula triumvirate for any presidential contest in the near future. That way, Raila may have just divested of himself the title of ‘a perennial loser who is always asking to be supported by other politicians, but who never returns the favour.’

As for ODM hierarchy and supporters, arrogance, crassness and rudeness, particularly on social media, only means one thing – a drastically reduced support for your leader that is likely to consign him into political oblivion.