KENYANS DONT EAT TAR OR GOBBLE MEGAWATTS

In the early seventies,, Foreign Affairs Minister Dr. Njoroge Mungai, was asked by his Dagoretti South constituents what he had done for them to deserve re-election as their Member of Parliament.

The good doctor thought for a moment then pointed in the direction of Kenyatta Conference Centre and said: "I brought you UNEP"!

What followed was a deepening silence then an explosion of chuckles mixed with a paroxysm of laughter. "Daktari," they told him: "We don't eat buildings."

This may be an exaggerated version of what actually took place, but the story line is genuine and the content is accurate.

Dr. Mungai was not re-elected in 1974, but that encounter with his constituents was a humbling experience for President Jomo Kenyatta's first cousin who was used to pampering and political patronage.

The meaning of the story? People need more than concrete to survive.

As they crisscross the country, Jubilee leaders are bloviating about the Chinese-built Standard Gauge Railway line, the number of kilometers of tarmacked roads they have built, and about the millions of homes they have wired for electricity.

That's fine but Kenyans neither eat tar nor gobble megawatts.

What people want answered are the following questions:

One, why are the prices of maize meal, milk, and sugar so high today than they were in 2013? For the majority of Kenyans, paying Shs60 for milk, Shs140 for sugar and Shs140 for a two-kilogram of maize meal is a challenge.

Two, what has the government done to deal with the spiraling unemployment? Jubilee's promise of creating 5,000 jobs in five years has flopped. More than 35% of youthful Kenyans are jobless and have no hope of securing employment any time soon.

Three, why do so many Kenyans go to bed hungry? More than a third of our people are starving and dying of hunger and the government appears to be doing nothing serious about it.

Four, affordable health care. Why are Kenyans still dying of preventable diseases? Kenyans are perishing in their thousands from malaria and TB, deaths which could be avoided. In total, thirteen percent of Kenyans cannot afford medical care. Where is the government?

Those are the bread and butter issues candidates scrambling for leadership must be tackling, not arguing over the kilometer length of the road network. Whether Jubilee government has built 6,000km of roads or 1,500km is neither here nor there.

Bottom line our leaders have failed us, again.

As Kenyan skies buzz with shiny helicopter blades, and roads choke with high-powered motor guzzlers in this campaign season, the only thing poor folks can do is to line up for hand-outs and hope for the best.

By 6pm on August 8 when all the polling polls are closed, those bumptious wananchi who have been hauling opprobrious attacks against opponents in defense of their candidates will saunter home empty handed to begin another five years of poverty and misery.

And the big guys? They will fade into oblivion not to be seen again until 2022.

And that is my say.

KENYAN OPPOSITION IN A QUANDARY OVER TOP GUN

It is not difficult to understand the unrelenting conundrum that has befallen the four gentlemen at the head of the opposition NASA coalition in Kenya.

For months, representatives of partner parties have been meeting behind closed doors to try to untether the critical question of who, among them, will fly the opposition flag in the August 8 elections against the ruling coalition.

Any one of the four qualifies to sit at State House. The question is: who is the most potent? Who among them has the kind of support across the ethnic divide and carries a knock-out punch to upend Jubilee out and send home Uhuru Kenyatta and William Ruto?

In the absence of a scientific study this question may not be easy to answer, and the usually biased opinion polls are not in a position to help. Nevertheless, because each one of them brings to the table unique leadership qualities the choice must depend not on perceived public support of any particular candidate but on goodwill and compromise.

Only one person can occupy the Executive office. But in democracies all over the world, and for the sake of national unity, close allies are often accommodated in special arrangements to reinforce governance and address the expectations of coalition partners.

This seems to be the likely path NASA will follow. From a constitutional point of view, two of the four already have a place on the high table as President and Deputy President. It could be assumed an understanding may be in the works for a special position of Prime Minister and for the creation of an enhanced role for the fourth partner.

Obviously this arrangement has the potential of congesting the top and even unleashing schisms, if not properly handled. But if Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka, Musalia Mudavadi and Moses Wetangula, are determined to maintain their unity as they say they are - and have the desire to vanquish Uhuru - then concessions must be factored in.

However, for now, settling on a compromise candidate remains a juggernaut for the expanded opposition organization. Each one of them wants to be the boss not an underling.

Unfortunately, this procrastination is frustrating supporters and eating up time. I am not surprised it's causing so much public speculation over NASA's unity and survival.

From my small magnifying glass this is how I see this play out among the candidates based on media reports.

Raila will easily sweep the larger Nyanza; take two-thirds of Western votes; take two-thirds of the Coast, half of the Rift Valley, North-Eastern and Eastern regions, and capture at least 50% of Nairobi. He will collapse badly in Kikuyuland.

Kalonzo, on the other hand, will raid the Eastern votes - despite the minimal opposition there; capture a quarter of Nairobi; get a quarter of the Coastal and North-Eastern votes; but flounder miserably in Nyanza, Western and Central.

Musalia and Wetangula will just toggle along and divide the remaining portion of the splintered Western votes in the region and in the Luhyia Diaspora.

So, what does this mean? It means Raila remains the man to beat. If Kalonzo is included in the ticket as Deputy President, the game could be over early in a free and fair election.

But a consensus must be reached so that NASA can go to the elections as a unified force. The insistence by individual parties that "its our way or the highway" threatens to torpedo everything the group has worked for.

If Raila for some reason decides to drop out in favor of any of the three, then whoever is NASA's top gun will give Jubilee a run for its money. But that proposition of dropping out appears untenable.

Another thorny issue facing the opposition surrounds the nomination process. There are those who want an open process where all parties compete at the grassroots and come up with one unified candidate, and those who prefer that NASA fields one candidate per seat to avoid competition and acrimony in the primaries.

This is a perennially tricky issue facing parties and NASA must face it now.

In my opinion, this is the issue which will determine whether or not a unified NASA will win majority seats and take control of Parliament, the Senate, and County Assemblies.

Personally, I prefer that everyone participates in the nominations and whoever wins carries the banner. It makes no sense to reprise old unworkable methods that have resulted in loss of seats to appease a few who want to

shun competition. Let democracy prevail.

And that is my say.

RELAX, PRESIDENT UHURU KENYATTA, RELAX!

The Founding President Jomo Kenyatta did it, so did Mwai Kibaki. Now, Uhuru Kenyatta is doing it.

I am talking about insults, slurs, and profanities that spew out of lips of our nation's Chief Executive. Only the second President Daniel arap Moi was respectful enough not to use foul language against his opponents.

Apart from calling his opponents "vinyang'arika" (minnows) and "snakes", Jomo Kenyatta was known to refer to the woman's anatomy with abundance.

President Kibaki, on the other hand, was generous with callous phrases such as "mavi ya kuku," chicken poop; "bure kabisa, completely useless;" and "pumbafu," stupid; in referring to ideas and people he disagreed with.

Uhuru is walking the same road of dirty, repulsive oratory, and going through fits of insensate fury that are uncalled for. Referring to other politicians as "devils" and "foolish" does not help his moral credibility.

His recent outbursts against opposition officials were not only un-presidential but explicitly hostile. They left Kenyans wondering about the suitability, or otherwise, of candidate Uhuru in this year's elections. No wonder Kenyans flooded the social media to question the President's temperament and sensitiveness.

Leaders are expected by the populace to display humility, tolerance, and unshakable calm at all times, but more so during this high-charged period when the political temperature is at its peak and everyone is pumped up over the upcoming polls.

The President did not have to be finicky about the remarks by the Governor of Turkana nor react the way he did to the spiel of the Mombasa Governor.

He would have won points in statesmanship if he had just ignored them or dismissed them with a brush of hand, but his unvarnished rhetoric did the opposite: it left the President with an egg on the face and unnecessarily boosted the popularity of the two opposition politicians.

There is no doubt Uhuru is queasy about the outcome of the polls and the events that could follow. Memories of 2007 and 2013 must be haunting him.

Moreover, recent disclosures of a scheme to hack electoral systems and the widespread mischief seen during the registration of voters point to some dirty tricks cooking in a pot that must worry everyone. That is why it was so important for the President to reassure Kenyans this week that the elections will be free and fair.

Nevertheless, it is increasingly becoming apparent that ongoing political events - marred by violence and hate speeches - could create problems for the country after August 8. But this situation could be reversed if we all sober up to the realization that an election is a contest of popularity not a call to arms.

Having said that, respect begets respect. If those opposite the ruling Jubilee party - and vice versa - want to be respected they must extend the same to their nemesis.

One thing I must say however. Respect for the presidency - the highest office in the land - is non-negotiable.

And that is my say.

GOVERNOR JOHO'S DREAMS REMAIN JUST THAT: DREAMS

A revitalized and bubbly Governor Ali Hassan Joho of Mombasa County jetted back from America some days ago after a two-week long meeting of the Strong Cities Network (SCN) that brought together mayors, municipal-level policy makers and practitioners.

The SCN was launched in 2015 with the aim of "building social cohesion and community resilience to counter violent extremism in all of its forms."

This year's assembly was the first for Joho. At the Washington DC meeting, he was incorporated into the International Steering Committee. Members to the committee were not selected for their knowledge, skills, or credentials in fighting violent extremism, but for purposes of achieving regional balance.

Last year, the meeting was officiated by Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Secretary of State Kerry. This year, the Washington DC parley was attended by low to middle level officials from the Department of Homeland Security.

For Joho, the meeting was not as important as the visit itself. It was a personal victory for a man who in 2010 appeared on the US list as one of six Kenyan Members of Parliament allegedly involved in drug trafficking. Therefore, no one expected him to ever step in the United States. But he did.

Interestingly, Joho has been attracting a lot of interest at home in recent months not only from his opponents in Jubilee but from within his own party, the Orange Democratic Party. While the former sees him as a spoiler of votes in a traditionally opposition stronghold, the latter views him as the man to watch beyond 2017.

Joho is a self-made politician and a millionaire who sprang out of a garbage collection business. He is popular among his party supporters on the island but is yet to reach the level of a Coast political kingpin - as some of his supporters claim he is.

For now, he is only a local politician with a local agenda who has built a name for himself nationwide through some crude political maneuvering.

Politically, the Kenyan Coast is a highly complex region because of its unique demographics. Residents there come from all ethnic groups in the country making it difficult for anyone to make a sensible election prediction.

But no one has controlled the politics of the region without a grip of the Mijikenda, the largest cluster of communities in the region.

Joho's ethnic origin is not from any of the nine Mijikenda tribes. It has Arab connections. His support in the city comes from descendants of past Arab sultans, former slave masters, and upcountry supporters subscribing to his Orange Democratic Movement.

As Governor, his boisterous persona does not match the subterranean conditions in the coastal city. Anyone approaching the island is met with streets blighted with trash. The place literally stinks. When it rains the island turns into a lake with floating raw sewage and murk; and during dry weather it turns into a carpet of dust. Most of the roads under his jurisdiction are in a pathetic state.

Since he became Governor, Joho has tried but failed to rein in widespread corruption in the county. He has sacked a few low level staff but sleaze dominates his County Assembly and the Executive. A frequent shortage of water in the city has become a chronic problem, while youth unemployment has festered into a ripe boil entrapping thousands of young people into a net of illicit drugs consumption.

His Vision 2035 supposedly intended to transform Mombasa into some kind of "Dubai" with high rise buildings and rolling highways remains a dream because of intractable land issues stemming from historical injustices and the absence of sound ideas and visions.

Joho's other

dream is to vie for the presidency in 2022. While it is not wrong to dream, he must first overcome the hurdle that is before him now; that of being re-elected in the August polls.

Mombasa watchers say Joho only won last time because he had a Mijikenda partner as a running mate. Now, with three other non-Mijikenda contenders on the ballot - all scrambling for Mijikenda poll partners and votes - the stakes are high for the Governor seat in Mombasa.

My view is that Joho must move beyond bluster and platitudes if he wants to advance politically and compete in the top league. He must work towards expanding his base from the townspeople to the Mijikenda voters on the fringes of the island and beyond.

He cannot rely on Raila Odinga's supporters. He must acquire his own. Only then can he have a chance to play in the First Division.

Otherwise, his dreams will remain just that: dreams.

And that is my say.

MESS WITH THESE TWO KENYAN ICONS AT YOUR OWN PERIL

If there are two people Kenyan politicians must not mess with, it is the former President Daniel Arap Moi, and Mama Ngina, wife of founding father Jomo Kenyatta and mother of incumbent President Uhuru.

Apart from their overarching dominance in many spheres of life, these two iconic personalities also have the resources and wherewithal to make or break political careers.

Just look at those who abandoned Moi's cabinet in a huff in 2002 for the budding Rainbow Coalition: Raila Odinga, Simeon Nyachae, Kalonzo Musyoka, Moody Awori. They all had presidential ambitions but by throwing epithets at the president as they dashed to the popular movement their political future was shattered.

Every time they chanted the demeaning song, Yote Yawezekana bila Moi (All is possible without Moi), the KANU leader was paying attention and quietly working to finish them.

Also in the same category was Martha Karua, the one time presidential candidate who walked out of Moi's meeting in a dramatic show of arrogance and defiance in June 2001. If you saw Moi's facial expression on that day you would know he was not amused by Karua's theatrics.

Then the Moi "students" - the Youth for Kanu '92 stalwarts: William Ruto, Kipruto Kirwa, and Cyrus Jirongo. They were discovered by Moi, nurtured by Moi and enriched by Moi. After coming of age they grew wings and abandoned the "professor of politics."

They may be wealthy now but since they left Moi's crib, they have only made baby steps towards their goal of reaching the top.

Jirongo has reached the pinnacle of his political career and Ruto's presidential ambition has virtually collapsed, thanks to Moi's divide and rule strategy. Kirwa is just now resuscitating himself after ten years in the cold, his confidence battered, his political future blurred.

The career of Paul Muite, a one time presidential candidate and a fiery politician, would have taken a different trajectory had he not been so fiercely and publicly critical of Uhuru and the Kenyatta family. His career ended abruptly and he was forced back to his legal profession. The same fate befell former MPs and presidential candidates Charity Ngilu and Koigi wa Wamwere.

In November last year, Karua repeated the same mistake he made 16 years ago by walking out of Uhuru's meeting in an outraged fury while flashing a two-finger salute of his NARC party.

With that brazen display of bravado her presidential ambition was extinguished and her bid for the governorship of Kirinyaga became moribund. The Kenyattas would not allow her to win. Moreover, one of her opponents is Uhuru's close confidante former Devolution Minister Anne Waiguru. Unless Waiguru quits or is disqualified Karua has no chance.

When Moi chose Uhuru to replace him he did so for a number of reasons. One, he wanted someone who could shield him from possible criminal charges over a myriad issues. Two, he wanted someone he could manipulate. And three, he wanted someone who could protect the Moi name and preserve his legacy.

So far, Uhuru has done well to meet Moi's expectations.

The recent meetings between Moi and Mama Ngina and between Moi and Uhuru were not accidental. They were strategic and a show of familial might. The aftermath of those meetings will reverberate for a long time to come.

Now, here is my prediction: Uhuru will be the president after August 8. That does not mean he will have won fairly at the ballot box.

The opposition will lose because Mzee Moi and Mama Ngina will not allow them to win.

William Ruto, on the other hand, will continue as deputy president but he will have a diminished role in the second Jubilee Administration.

Conversely, Moi's son, Gideon, will be rewarded with a powerful position in the Cabinet and his popularity will soar.

He will be what G. G. Kariuki was to Moi and Chris Murungaru to Kibaki. He will be "president-in-waiting." He will understudy the incumbent. Thereafter, his path to State House will be unstoppable as the Kalenjin nation will rally behind him.

How about Ruto? I predict the amiable politician will be a lame-duck deputy president, his influence will dwindle and eventually the man will be vanquished. Five and half years from now his name will not be on the presidential ballot.

Like a bull elephant, Moi does not forget. All those splenetic politicians who bad-mouthed him while he was at the helm will pay for their sin one way or another as long as the former president is around.

And that is my say.