Saturday, August 14, 2010

The two political families' relations go back a long way

By Gakuu Mathenge

The relationship between the Kenyattas and Odingas goes back a long way. Their history mirrors the history of the modern Kenya state and their relationship has shaped Kenya’s politics from before independence to date.

Jomo Kenyatta and Jaramogi Oginga became the founding President and Vice-President respectively. As elder statesmen at a time the British colonial government came down hard on natives’ agitation for independence, the two inspired hope and mid-wifed the birth of the young Kenyan nation.

When Kenyatta was detained (October 20, 1952 –August 16, 1961), it fell on Jaramogi to keep the nationalist troops on course, inspiring a nation under colonial emergency oppression, opposing and protesting excesses by colonial forces against natives, and waging an almost lone ranger local and international campaign for Kenyatta’s release.
Founding President Jomo Kenyatta accompanied by former First Lady Mama Ngina Kenyatta holds his son Uhuru.


They are also among the wealthiest and influential families in Kenya. Just like Kenyatta and Jaramogi acrimoniously fell out in the mid-1960s, their two most political offspring, Raila and Uhuru have been bitterest of foes.

The climax of Jaramogi-Jomo fallout was 1966 ‘little’ Kanu elections, and a delegates conference held in Limuru, when Kenyatta’s henchmen, led by then Kanu secretary general, TJ Mboya, created 8 provincial Kanu vice president positions, and abolished the national vice-president’s office then held by Jaramogi.With that Jaramogi was vanquished and buddled out of government.

Uhuru has been the face of the anti-Raila political forces in and outside Parliament.

To start with, Uhuru blames Raila Odinga for sinking his presidential bid in 2002, when he led a rebellion in Kanu that burst and destroyed the political monolith for good. In the Grand Coalition Government, Uhuru has been viewed as paying back Raila in kind, with his sidekicks fuelling intrigues to snooker and torpedo ODM’s plans and schemes at every turn.

Checkmate Politics

Both retain large and well-oiled battalions of advisers, consultants, lawyers, scholars and activists to checkmate each other, with civil service, Kenyan communities and Parliament largely split and orbiting around the two.

During the just ended referendum campaigns, and despite existence of a supposed joint "Yes" secretariat, the two effectively locked each other from their respective home regions, with Uhuru attending only one ‘Yes’ rally in Kisumu, and Raila only one small rally at Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu, with President Kibaki acting as common chaperon at both events. It is in this backdrop that Uhuru’s very warm visit to Raila’s home — regardless of circumstances — is heavily loaded with symbolism of breaking new ground, or the birth of a new era devoid of mutual hostility and mistrust between the two and their respective supporters.

While Raila bolted out of Kanu and joined hands with opposition forces to block Uhuru’s presidential bid in 2002, Uhuru joined hands with Kibaki to oppose Raila’s presidential bid in 2007.

The two are perceived the most influential personalities likely to shape the political direction of the country in the immediate post Kibaki era. The convenor of the Kikuyus For Change inter-ethnic dialogue forum, Mr Ngunjiri Wambugu, observed:

"Kenyans may not like political dynasties but they cannot ignore a young Kenyatta visiting an older Odinga at a time of momentous national transformation like now. At independence, it was an older Kenyatta and a younger Jaramogi who founded the modern Kenya state. We may not like it, but the two have the capacity to use their heritage of past Luo-Kikuyu political cooperation to midwife a new dispensation, or sink the birth of a new Kenya.

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