In a fortnight, President William Ruto’s willpower to take on his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta will be tested when the statutory deadline for the former Head of State to quit active politics lapses.
Section 6 (1) of the Presidential Retirement Benefits Act states that a retired President shall not hold office in any political party for more than six months after leaving the presidency, which places a March 13 deadline for Mr Kenyatta to quit his position as leader of Jubilee Party.
The National Treasury has allocated the former President Sh678.57 million for his pension and retirement perks for the year to June, which he can only access after he ceases to hold any office in a political party, a sanction President Ruto’s camp has vowed to enforce in the escalating political duel with his predecessor that the new leaders signalled on the day they assumed office.
Mr Kenyatta has maintained that he will not retire from active politics and is keen on holding on to his position as leader of Jubilee Party, even at the cost of losing his retirement perks.
“I am retired, but I am not tired. I might be out of office… but I am fully behind Raila. If he tells me we go this way, we will. I supported him in 2022, and I will back him because he is an honest man out to unite Kenya. I am not looking for any seat, but it is my right to back Raila,” Mr Kenyatta said during a recent rally in Luanda, Vihiga County.
When Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua rose to speak after being sworn into office in September last year, he went hammer and tongs after the outgoing President, signalling what has largely come to pass under the new administration.
“It became a crime in this country to be a friend of William Ruto. It is only that it was not put in the penal code,” said Mr Gachagua, setting the stage for the “freedom is here” celebratory call.
Although President Ruto initially did not take a similar route of publicly attacking his predecessor, his actions thereafter have spoken louder than words.
Six months
In less than six months after pulling off a political upset, the Kenya Kwanza administration has served its “revenge” cold and prompt. In a dramatic change in fortunes, individuals who coalesced around Mr Kenyatta and Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party leader Raila Odinga have found themselves in unfamiliar territory. Immediately after taking over, the Head of State has been on an overdrive revoking edicts invoked by his predecessor and unravelling policies, directives and programmes that were at the heart of Mr Kenyatta’s administration.
In a span of two months, Dr Ruto had reversed at least 17 key policies, directives and projects.
Stamping his authority, the President signed his first executive order appointing six judges rejected by Mr Kenyatta over alleged integrity issues. He also enhanced the judiciary’s budget.
This was followed by a new directive reverting port operations and cargo clearance to the port of Mombasa from the Naivasha inland container depot, as well as the taking back of Kenya Railways and the Kenya Ports Authority to the Transport ministry and Kenya Pipeline Company to the Energy ministry.
President Ruto also cancelled deals for mega projects such as the Rironi-Mau Summit highway expansion tender, Kazi Mtaani Programme and fuel, fertiliser and food subsidies.
In state appointments, the Commander-in-Chief has left no doubt who is targeted in the ongoing purge by his administration, kicking out Mr Kenyatta’s appointees and replacing them with loyalists.
Directors appointed by the former government, especially in the last days, have been fired, with 2022 elections losers allied to Kenya Kwanza taking their places. Of the board changes made in 58 parastatals, more than 100 appointees tapped by Mr Kenyatta have been shown the door. National Government Administrative Officers have not been spared in the shake-up to weed out regional commissioners perceived to be Azimio sympathisers.
Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei, a close ally of the President, is non-apologetic and on Wednesday called on the Head of State to kick out all “remnants” of Azimio officials still left in public service.
“In this government, there are still many remnants of Azimio even in senior government positions and they should be shown the door. There is no other option,” said Mr Cherargei.
Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka said Kenya Kwanza demonised the Handshake — the 2018 truce between Mr Kenyatta and Mr Odinga — and still have unfinished business with anyone who did not vote for them.
“This has been manifested by DP Gachagua’s statement that the government is like a company with shareholding and those who did not vote for them have no shares in it,” said Mr Onyonka.
In Parliament, National Assembly Speaker Moses Wetang’ula in October last year caused an uproar after ruling in favour of Kenya Kwanza declaring the ruling coalition the majority party.
This is after allowing MPs allied to Azimio to decamp to Kenya Kwanza although there was an existing coalition agreement still barring such a move. This was even going against an advisory by the Registrar of Political Parties.
Vicious battle
The Senate has also witnessed a vicious battle to have the deputy speaker recognise changes in the minority side after Azimio kicked out their whip, Isiolo Senator Fatuma Dullo (Jubilee) for her dalliance with Kenya Kwanza.
Senators allied to the ruling alliance reminded their opponents during a heated plenary sitting on Tuesday that it was their turn to inflict the same treatment they received from the handshake regime when the likes of former Senate majority leaders led by then Elgeyo Marakwet senator Kipchumba Murkomen were hounded out of office.
Deputy Speaker Kathure Murungi (United Democratic Alliance) declined to recognise the new Azimio house leadership to protect the Kenya Kwanza-leaning Dullo. Last Wednesday, Mr Odinga accused President Ruto’s administration of seeking to gag alternative voices and persecuting Mr Kenyatta’s officials.
“They are persecuting those who served in Uhuru’s government. They are persecuting Matiang’i and are now threatening his advocate Danstan Omari with DCI summons yet he is a lawyer just doing his job,” he said.
The statement followed the summoning of Mr Omari, who is representing former Interior CS Fred Matiang’i, by the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI).
DCI officers last week raided Dr Matiang’i’s Karen home seeking access to CCTV footage on an alleged raid of the residence by police.
The Kenyatta-Odinga axis has accused the government of targeting Mr Kenyatta’s family as politicians in Dr Ruto’s fold accused the fourth President of funding anti-government rallies as a ploy to avoid paying taxes.
Paying taxes
At the height of the controversy in February, former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta dared the Kenya Revenue Authority to sell her property should the agency prove that she has not been paying taxes.
Before decamping to Kenya Kwanza, nominated MP Sabina Chege said it was unfortunate that the government is targeting the country’s only surviving former Head of State, pointing to the scaling down of Mr Kenyatta’s security detail.
“Let this government stop being petty. We have bigger problems in Kenya than punishing Uhuru and those who have served in the previous government. Let them concentrate on lowering the high cost of living,” she said. After toppling the retired President from his home turf, Kenya Kwanza has set its sights on Jubilee Party.
For instance, the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties ratified changes by the Jubilee Party’s National Executive Committee that kicked out Kenyatta-leaning officials, Vice-Chair David Murathe, Secretary-General Jeremiah Kioni and National Treasurer Kagwe Gichohi.
Taking over as acting SG was former Kieni MP Kanini Kega, who is now in Dr Ruto’s camp, and is being assisted in the faction by national chairman Nelson Dzuya after the coup. The Political Parties Tribunal has temporarily suspended the changes.
The fight for Jubilee Party has morphed into a revenge battle with President Ruto intent to take back the party he had built with Mr Kenyatta since 2017.
In 2020, President Ruto lost the battle to control Jubilee Party after Mr Kenyatta chased out his allies and totally edged him out of the succession matrix.
He went ahead to form the United Democratic Alliance which propelled him to presidency in the 2022 polls.
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