Wednesday, July 17, 2013

The opposition, Cord, still trying to find its feet

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Posted Wednesday, July 17, 2013 | By MACHARIA GAITHO
When President Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto took the oath of office before a rapturous crowd at the Kasarani stadium on April 9, it was to preside over a deeply split country.
One of the key guests, Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni who spoke on behalf of the assembled leaders from other African countries, even chided the crowd for only cheering the Kenyatta-Ruto Jubilee Coalition pair, and booing every mention of the defeated opposition ticket led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka.
Attracted opprobrium
The Cord alliance leaders were conveniently out of the country on inauguration day, attending a “bonding” session in South Africa, but their mere absence from the festivities attracted opprobrium from Jubilee supporters.
Although Mr Odinga and Musyoka had grudgingly accepted the Supreme Court verdict throwing out their petition against the presidential election results, and therefore recognising the electoral outcome, it was clear by inauguration time that the wounds had not healed.
The opposition leaders were hurting after snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. They, and their supporters, were bitter with a Central Kenya-Rift Valley political and administrative machinery they felt had robbed them of the ultimate prize.
They were bitter with a reformed judiciary they presumed would be much more resolute against external pressure, only to see the newly constituted Supreme Court under Chief Justice Willy Mutunga in its first major case, treat the petition with little sympathy.
If the defeated ticket was bitter and angry, the jubilant Jubilee supporters were enjoying rubbing their faces in the mud.
They were in celebratory mood, but they were still coming across as bitter, angry and mean-spirited. At the time of the inauguration, it was clear that the spirit of grace in defeat and humility in victory did not arise.
The country was divided right down the middle as had happened in the 2007 election when Mr Odinga failed to dislodge President Kibaki.
Alliances may have changed somewhat, but it was still Mr Odinga, a hero of the struggle for democracy, being “cheated” out of the presidency by powerful forcers representing the central Kenya status quo. The difference this time was that there was no descent into violence and anarchy as witnessed five years earlier.
As President Kenyatta and Deputy President Ruto moved to consolidate power and shape their new administration, they held all the advantages.
Majorities in both the Senate and National Assembly gave the Jubilee team clear control of the Legislature, taking the seats of Speaker and Deputy Speaker in both Houses as well as the majority leadership.
By the time it came to appointing a Cabinet and making other key changes in government, there was no doubt who was in charge.
The President and Deputy were putting on a united front and open displays of amity, confounding the sceptics who presumed the main ethnic blocs in Jubilee they respectively led would quickly start jostling for power.
The opposition, by contrast, seemed defeated and dispirited, with little coming out to demonstrate that it was re-energising itself to take up a powerful role as an alternative government.
While the Jubilee government has faced numerous challenges over the past 100 days — major national security breaches, the teachers’ strike, the free school laptops debate, the International Criminal Court indictments, spiralling prices and unfulfilled promises — the unfocused opposition has been unable to take advantage.
Outflanked by Jubilee
It generally has been outflanked by the Jubilee numbers in the Legislature, and its members have been more busy voting with the government side on increased pay for MPs rather than in crafting issues to keep the administration on its toes.
As the 100-day honeymoon period for the Jubilee government expires, perhaps the question is not just whether it will deliver in it’s lofty promises; but whether the opposition will be able to find its feet and show its capability to provide a credible alternative.

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