Restless Namwamba finally lands in Cabinet

By Oscar Obonyo

The tale of Youth and Sports Minister Ababu Namwamba conjures the memory of Simon Makonde – the notable character in yesteryears’ primary school textbook who achieved so much within a short span.

According to the famed fiction, Makonde was born on a Monday, baptised on Tuesday, married on Wednesday, wedded on Thursday, fell ill on Friday, died on Saturday, and buried on a Sunday. Similarly, Namwamba was confirmed as elected MP on a Monday, sworn-in on Tuesday, steered Constitution breakthrough deal on a Wednesday at the peak of his parliamentary term, appointed Cabinet minister on Thursday, and sworn-in last Friday.

For a first term MP, there is no denying the Budalang’i MP has indeed outdone himself. His critics have described him as a tragic hero, or better still regarded him as young and restless. Does his latest appointment to the Cabinet attest to these claims or does it shame his haters?

In his first exclusive interview with The Standard On Sundaysince his elevation to the Cabinet, Namwamba denies ever lobbying for the position. Observers and opponents in rival parties also say the MP was rewarded for being a sycophant of Prime Minister Raila Odinga, a claim the minister refutes.

He says Cabinet positions are handed out at the discretion of the Grand Coalition principals and even if one was to lobby, the process can never be within one’s hands since President Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga have to consult and agree.

“I am a well educated and competent Kenyan with the conviction to better my country.  I trust the two gentlemen appointed me to serve in Government because of their faith in me and my capacity to do the job,” he says.

Together with fellow first term colleagues, Justice and Constitutional Affairs minister Eugene Wamalwa and Nairobi Metropolitan minister Jamleck Kamau, Namwamba has been privileged to experience the best of both sides of Kenya’s historic Grand Coalition arrangement, on the backbench and frontbench.

Verbal attack

The minister, whose election as the defunct Electoral Commission of Kenya officially confirmed Budalang’i MP on December 31, 2007, thrust himself onto the political scene dramatically during the MPs’ swearing-in ceremony on January 15, 2008. During the charged exercise following the disputed presidential poll in which Kibaki was controversially declared winner, Namwamba swore allegiance instead to “Rais wa Jamhuri (President of the Republic) Amolo Raila Odinga, instead of “Rais wa Jamhuri Mwai Kibaki”.

With that bold and odd proclamation beamed live on television to millions in Kenya and across the world, Namwamba announced his presence on the political scene in style. He sent out a clear message to the more experienced politicians that here was a new rookie to watch.

The MP has since clarified that he did not swear allegiance to Raila the man, but to Raila the symbol of democracy and the true victor of the 2007 poll. But President Kibaki is not the sole political heavyweight to be humiliated and targeted by Namwamba.

Before he made a comeback in late 2009, the minister trained venomous verbal attack on his own party leader, Raila. Then, he was momentarily allied to Eldoret North MP William Ruto, who was already leading a breakaway from the ODM party.

Since making up with Raila, high profile victims of the minister’s tongue lashing have included Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka, and Deputy Prime Ministers, Uhuru Kenyatta, and Musalia Mudavadi. But it is the latter who has lately been on the receiving end.

Namwamba summarily dismisses Mudavadi’s presidential bid as a “project of the lords of impunity only out to maintain the status quo”.

And this has made him a political foe to Mudavadi campaign, particularly in Western region. During the DPM’s recent tour of Busia County, to popularise United Democratic Forum, he made whistle-stop campaigns in Funyula, Butula, Nambale, and Amagoro constituencies but finally settled in Budalang’i where he spent most of the day, addressing rallies.

During the tour as well as the final rally in Busia town, Namwamba came under heavy attack for being disrespectful to Mudavadi and for undermining Luhya unity. Isn’t the minister concerned that the affront by his senior kinsman and seasoned politician, Mudavadi, may end his political career?

Constitution review

“On the contrary, the attacks make me happy. That Mudavadi can ignore other constituencies in Busia County and opt to camp in Budalang’i – the tiniest of them all – means that he views Namwamba as the man to watch, in his political game plan,” says the minister.

The MP confesses to being driven in life by ingenuity and courage: “Never be afraid to test the untested. And do not be afraid to stretch the rubber to the limits of its elasticity simply because you are scared it will snap.”

In confronting weighty adversaries and navigating through challenges in life, Namwamba draws his strength from respected American essayist and poet, Ralph Waldo Emerson’s famous quote: “Do not go where the path leads, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail”.

Ideally, the vocal legislator believes in trail blazing and leaving a mark in whatever undertaking he engages.

And going by his role and that of parliamentary colleague Mandera Central MP Abdikadir Mohammed in the Constitution review process, there is no doubt they registered history.

Namwamba, 36, is particularly inspired by the words of his former law lecturer at the University of Nairobi, Prof Githu Muigai, who advised that “to succeed as an attorney, one must have fire in the belly – a serious drive to act.” He followed through the advice and today student and teacher are colleagues in Cabinet.