Mixed reactions greet Ruto's letter to President over job

By VITALIS KIMUTAI                    

There were sharp reactions Thursday over Eldoret North MP William Ruto's letter to President Kibaki asking him to decide the fate of the Ministry of Higher Education.

Ruto’s supporters said he was perfectly in order to make the request because programmes at the ministry should not suffer at the expense of political expediency.

However, those who opposed the MP’s approach claimed the move shows that he is desperate to get the job back.

Kangundo MP Johnstone Muthama said it was wise for the suspended minister to have written to the appointing authority seeking to decide on the fate of the Ministry.

 “It is within Ruto’s constitutionally given democratic right as an MP and citizen to seek to know why he cannot get back his job after being cleared of graft allegations by a court, which was the basis of his suspension,” Muthama said.

The PNU Chief Whip said it would be fair for the principals to reinstate Ruto so he could carry on with his duties as services ast the Higher Education Ministry had been hampered.

MPs Benjamin Lang’at (Ainamoi), Peris Simam (Eldoret South), Jackson Kiptanui (Keiyo South), businessman Daniel Maestro Rono, Bomet Mayor Leonard Barsumei, Wareng County Council chairman Paul Kiprop and his Nandi County Council counterpart Ezekiel Ruto demanded that the President and Prime Minister immediately reinstate the MP.

“It was wise for Ruto make the bold move as it is unfair for the principals to hold him back from occupying his Cabinet position when the courts cleared him of wrong-doing. It is against rules of natural justice,” Rono said.

Rono added, “Kibaki and Raila should decide whether to reinstate the MP or fire him. It is wrong for them to keep him in the dark for this long.”

“It is upon the President to reinstate Ruto as he was the one who asked him to step aside until he was cleared. It does not call for much consultations for the issue to be resolved,” Simam said.

Langat said it was perfectly in order for the Eldoret North MP to write to the principals as failure to appoint a substantive Higher Education Minister had negatively affected service delivery in the docket.

“It is important that the principals make a decision on the matter because one minister cannot perfectly execute duties of two ministries,” Langat said.

Kiptanui said, “It is obvious that one of the principals does not wish to have Ruto reinstated in the Cabinet at a time when the country is approaching a general election. He feels threatened by Ruto’s performance in his ministerial docket,”

Titus Bitok, a Moi University law lecturer said it is important for the principals to inform Ruto and the country why they cannot reinstate him to the Cabinet.

“This stalemate is very costly not only to Ruto but also the tax payers as there are many pending issues in the ministry that require ministerial attention,” Bitok said.

Bitok, however, was of the position that Ruto should have waited for the outcome of the ICC case facing him to be dealt with in two months that so that things are clearer to him.

“It is good Ruto was cleared of the graft case which had been hanging round his neck but there is the ICC case to think about. That will still linger in his mind even if he was returned to the Cabinet today,” Bitok said.

Bitok further said by virtue of his stature, Ruto does not require a Cabinet position to be relevant in the country’s politics.

Nyando MP Paul Outa said the Eldoret North MP’s move showed how desperate he was for the Cabinet post, which he has not occupied for several months.

“Ruto’s action shows that he has realised he cannot function outside the Cabinet. It is a weakness he has exposed of himself,” Outa said.

Outa said the MP should realise that he cannot force the principals to act in a manner they did not want to.

“If I was him, I would not have written the letter but could have waited for them to make the much-awaited reshuffle,” Outa said.

He said that Ruto’s absence from the Cabinet should have provided him with a perfect opportunity to traverse the country and market his ideologies to the voters as he prepares for the presidential race.

Nominated ODM MP Musa Sirma said the move was a clear indication that Ruto no longer enjoys rapport with the two principals and especially the President as he used to do.

“If it has gotten to a situation where he has to write a letter, then it means there is a big disconnect between him, the President and PNU operatives in the corridors of power,” Sirma said.