Mbadi: Raila wants suspended minister back in Cabinet

By JACOB NG’ETICH, jngetich@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted  Saturday, July 2 2011 at 21:02

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The reinstatement of suspended Higher Education minister William Ruto to the Cabinet remains in limbo as a new twist emerges that it might be PNU’s ploy to keep him out for political expediency.

The suspended minister’s woes have mostly been blamed on Prime Minister Raila Odinga following a fallout between the two.

Previous allegations are that the PM has stood his ground against Mr Ruto’s reinstatement eight months after his suspension to face trial over alleged impropriety in the 2001 sale of 96 acres of land in Ngong Forest. It has been four months since Mr Ruto was cleared by the court.

There are claims that Mr Odinga, in a meeting with President Kibaki about Mr Ruto’s comeback, argued that the Eldoret North MP still faced other criminal cases in court.

The two are said to have agreed to seek Attorney-General Amos Wako’s opinion, and in a letter sent under confidential cover in May, Head of the Public Service Francis Muthaura asked the AG to look into the issue.

On May 24, Mr Wako forwarded the same letter to Director of Public Prosecutions Keriako Tobiko asking for more information on the MP.

Mr Tobiko is then said to have responded that there was no record of pending charges against Mr Ruto.

Two months after the DPP’s correspondence, Mr Ruto is still in suspension.

Gwassi MP John Mbadi insists that PNU has a sinister motive in the matter arguing “the President would have gone ahead and appointed him in disregard of the National Accord like he has done in the past”.

“It is not once, not even twice President Kibaki has disregarded the accord to make appointments in the government. If he wanted to appoint Mr Ruto, he would go ahead and expect us to either protest or keep quiet,” said Mr Mbadi.

He said he would not be surprised if PNU is holding up the reappointment to portray the PM in bad light. He said Mr Odinga was not opposed to Mr Ruto’s comeback, especially since he is trying to win over Rift Valley voters.

But Cherangany MP Joshua Kuttuny, a confidant of Mr Ruto, laid all blame on Mr Odinga.

“Uhuru (Mr Kenyatta) has been camping at State House to see to it that William (Mr Ruto) is back to the ministry, but the PM has frustrated the efforts,” said the MP.

And while defending PNU, Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama also pointed his finger at Mr Odinga. “Mr Ruto was not sacked from his ministry. It is the President who suspended him following a court case.

Nobody in PNU is blocking him from getting back the seat. It is ODM that has decided to punish him for not supporting the party. Simple,” said the government chief whip.

Mr Muthama said the president was not the kind of person who would be involved in such dirty games: “He has wanted to see Mr Ruto back in the ministry so that he can perform his duties, given that he is a real performer.”

But even as Mr Ruto seeks to know his fate, he seems to have realised the power play between the two parties and has lately accorded more time to UDM, the party he intends to use in his 2012 presidential bid.

His letter to President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga requesting to know about his return to Cabinet after he was acquitted of corruption allegations was worded to suggest that he would be comfortable whichever way they decided.

Mr Kuttuny said the Eldoret North MP was focused on next year’s elections and was busy building contacts around the country.

He said it mattered less whether he got his Cabinet post back or not.

“Whether he gets into Cabinet or not, he is currently busy building contacts.

As you know he is now on a tour of the Coast,” said Mr Kuttuny in a telephone interview from Mombasa yesterday.