Talkers
should do what they loved in Saitoti
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Updated Wednesday, June 20 2012 at 22:39 GMT+3
By Okech Kendo
When the curtain came down for Prof George
Saitoti it did not matter whether he was a Maasai or a Kikuyu. He was an
educated Kenyan who was serving the country the best way he knew, while also
taking care of personal interests. This he did to be the best of his ability.
He exploited the opportunities he had over the
three decades he was at the centre of power. Which is as it should be, for this
is what the Good Book asks: To love yourself the way you love your neighbour.
It is striking the balance, which makes good or bad of men.
Opportunistic
It did not matter also whether Joshua Orwa Ojode
was an ODM or PNU MP, or a Luo from Homa Bay County. The Ndhiwa MP had a
job to do, which he did to the best of his ability. If he shone brighter,
it could be because others were not smart enough, or opportunistic in building
value adding networks.
Anyone who confesses they cannot do this is not
being honest. After the glowing eulogies, you now know the Pharisees. Or they
just believed in the hereafter and were merely courting intercession of their
superior colleague?
The mourners know what is wrong and right, but
they lack the courage to take the highway of leadership and integrity.
The talking shops parroted Prof Saitoti’s plea
for peaceful elections as if the Mombasa peace conference two weeks ago was not
organised to drum national sense into them. They were supposed to understand
their ambitions for high office is subordinate to the national interest.
Saitoti and Ojode were hardworking Kenyans who
understood they were called to serve. Their paths crossed and merged around
public service, and personal business interests. These interests were active
long before the two met at the Internal Security docket in 2008. Because they
shared interests in more ways than the public knows, they were sure to be
joined at the hip.
They were good Kenyans who respected their call
to serve during challenging moments of power hoarding and blame-sharing.
True, their partnership was outstanding, especially seen against the failed
‘power sharing’ in other ministries.
While in Sports and Youth, then Minister Hellen
Sambili and Assistant Minister Kabando Wa Kabando could not share a table
without one casting aspersions on the other. The failed partnership was
dissolved when Prof Sambili was carted away to another ministry.
The power sharing between Charity Ngilu and
Mwangi Kiunjuri also collapsed acrimoniously in the Ministry of Water and
Irrigation. The President had to rescue Kiunjuri with a flight to the Ministry
of Public Works.
Ms Ngilu of the National Rainbow Coalition,
which is allied to ODM, has a memorable but infamous battle with Kiunjuri of
PNU. The collapse of their ‘coalition’ was much more than a clash around party
matters. Memories of Kiunjuri’s vitriol against Ngilu were remarkable in their
personalised hue.
Ngilu was also just as scathing in her spite of
the Assistant Minister at Maji House. It was like there was no equitable
sharing of the ‘soup’, whenever there was something on the table.
Neither has there been sisterly coalition
between Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o as Minister for Medical Services, and Beth Mugo as
Minister for Public Health and Sanitation. Initially, the two clashed over turf
and funding of the two related dockets.
Then the fight became a party matter, with Mugo
pushing her PNU agenda and love for Cousin Uhuru Kenyatta, with Prof Nyongo of
ODM hitting back just as hard. There has since been a ceasefire between Prof
Nyong’o, and Ms Mugo, but no love has been lost because there was never any
between the two.
Then there is the querulous Kazungu Kambi, Prof
Nyongo’s Assistant Minister pushing party matters into the unresolved National
Hospital Insurance Fund crisis.
When Kambi put in his ‘ten cents’ view on the
NHIF scandal, it sound more like he was addressing a United Republican Party
rally, with guns blazing against Prof Nyong’o of ODM.
Nyongo supports Prime Minister Raila Odinga for
president, while Kambi is a fixture around William Ruto’s ambition. With
that kind of partiality, the critical issues get blurred. Such was never the
case with Saitoti and Ojode who shared much more than a ministry and for far
much longer.
Personal prejudice
Anyone who tries hard enough can be just as good
as Saitoti and Ojode were said to have been. All it takes is the
understanding that, being in public office is call to duty greater than one’s own
interests and prejudices.
What Saitoti and Ojode did or did not do while
at the Office of the President can be done by anyone who puts public interest
above personal prejudices. And whatever they did for the good of the country is
what taxpayers hired them to do.
By so mourning and moaning the Government and
Parliament will not be the same again without the late ministers, is admission
that the rest of the crowd are not trying hard enough to be good servants of
the people.
By Saitoti and Ojode’s colleagues’ own
admissions of having fallen short of public expectations, they are inviting
right thinking voters to reconsider their contracts.
And this shall be during the General Election.
The writer is The Standard’s Managing Editor
Quality and Production.
kendo@standardmedia.co.ke
source: http://standardmedia.co.ke/?articleID=2000060227&pageNo=2
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