Kenya’s Vice President roots for Museveni

SHARE BOOKMARKPRINTEMAILRATING

By Felix Basiime, John Nyanzi & Emmanuel Gyezaho  (email the author)
Posted Friday, January 14 2011 at 00:00

Kyenjojo/Kampala

The opposition yesterday dismissed Kenya Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka’s backing for Mr Museveni, saying it is inconsequential and driven by personal interests of politicians from the neighbouring country.

Mr Musyoka, who addressed at least three of President Museveni’s rallies in western Uganda yesterday, described his host as a “good man” and begged Ugandans to offer Mr Museveni a fourth elective term in office.

Not the first
Mr Musyoka rooted for President Museveni just a month after Kenya’s Prime Minister Raila Odinga also accompanied the Ugandan leader on his campaign tour of Busoga. But opposition MP and spokesperson for the Inter-Party Cooperation campaigns, Mr Hussein Kyanjo, said Mr Musyoka’s gesture points at a possible role of Uganda in the chaos that followed the 2007 Kenyan presidential election.

“We are not bothered by that visit. But I know that this is going to increase the suspicion that Uganda was involved at a corporate level at least in the commotion that followed Kenya’s December 2007 election,” he said. “The inflow of Kenyan politicians of high calibre simply endorses the feeling that somehow Uganda was involved. Remember there was a fear which side Uganda supported during the violence in Kenya.”

After disputed results, Kenya in early 2008 descended into chaos, with Raila accusing President Kibaki of stealing his victory. President Museveni was among the first heads of state to recognise Kibaki’s win, despite the stand-off—angering Raila’s ODM party. The Orange Democratic Movement later accused Uganda of sending troops into western Kenya to quell opposition riots—accusations Kampala denies.

Other opposition spokespersons Kenneth Kakande (DP) and Robert Kanusu (UPC) said Mr Musyoka’s tour has no impact on the local politics. “They are free to express themselves but as far as I am concerned, we don’t have Kenyan voters in Uganda. The Kenyans are not going to decide for us who will be our President,” said Mr Kakande.

Mr Kanusu said: “I doubt whether Mr Musyoka can convince a street kid to support President Museveni. If Museveni had built good roads, hospitals and helped the poor, he would not need to bring in mercenaries of that category.”

Minister present
On the trail, Mr Musyoka, who was accompanied by Kenya’s Information minister Samuel Poghisio, waved to cheering supporters through the roof top of the President’s luxury Land Cruiser vehicle as the two men approached the different rally venues.

And when Mr Museveni took to the podium, he introduced the Kenyan VP as his special guest, before letting Mr Musyoka speak to the crowd. “We wish President Museveni and all Ugandans success in this campaign,” said Mr Musyoka at Kyenjojo town, Kyarusozi Sub-county in Kyenjojo District. “We want to be together as one in the East African Community and we are here to encourage you to be with us in the EAC.”

The Kenyan VP flew directly from Pretoria where he met South African leader Jacob Zuma as part of a group of emissaries that Kenya has dispatched to various African capitals to drum continental backing for Nairobi’s bid to convince the International Criminal Court to allow it locally try the now famous Ocampo Six. It is understood that Mr Musyoka’s visit and meeting with President Museveni is part of that lobby of support ahead of a scheduled AU Summit on January 29 in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa.

Kenya is against the idea of having the ICC try the six suspects named to have masterminded the bloodletting that greeted the country’s presidential election and is pushing the AU to convince the United Nations Security Council to have the ICC case deferred on grounds that Kenya has the capacity to try the suspects.

A special division of the High Court has emerged as the local option to try the Ocampo Six; Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta, MP William Ruto, Industrialisation Minister Henry Kosgey, Mr Francis Muthaura, former police commissioner Mohammed Hussein Ali and radio presenter Joshua Arap Sang.