President
Uhuru Kenyatta is what we here in Kenya call “kichwa ngumu”. For more than a
year, hundreds of Kenyans have lost their lives in terrorist related attacks.
Many Kenyans have for long held the opinion that the Interior Cabinet Secretary
Joseph Ole Lenku and the Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo were in over
their heads in their jobs. The President thought otherwise.
It
was pretty obvious to everyone that inevitably, we would get to the point where
these two gentlemen would have to leave. I am surprised that it took so long.
President Kenyatta knew that a decision on the two would have to be made, but
he chose to delay the inevitable for reasons that are not immediately clear to
me. It was probably because everyone seemed to be telling him what to do, and
Uhuru doesn’t take instructions very well. Kichwa ngumu.
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| "Nini?" |
However,
the President has done the right thing in forcing the resignation of the
Inspector General. Yeah, that story about Kimaiyo “retiring for personal
reasons” is a joke and it just makes him look pathetic. Uhuru has also done the
right thing by easing out Ole Lenku from his position in Cabinet. His
nomination of Joseph Nkaissery as Interior Cabinet Secretary is a smart move.
First,
Nkaissery, being a retired soldier, is more acceptable to the Kenyan populace
that has for months been highly skeptical of Ole Lenku’s suitability for that
position. He brings with him a wealth of experience in security matters, and
subject to his confirmation by Parliament, he should inject a much needed
professional and experienced perspective to that ministry. Second, he is a
member of the opposition, having being sponsored to parliament by ODM. That
should shut up the busybodies on that side for a while. And if the security
situation does not improve under Nkaissery, well, things are going to get very
interesting in CORD. Third, just like Ole Lenku, he is Maasai, so there will be
no backlash from that region.
I
kind of feel sorry for Ole Lenku for the situation he finds himself in. There
he was, enjoying his nice, cushy job at the Utalii Hotel, when the call of
national duty came knocking and he found himself at the centre of one of the
most stressful jobs in the country. When the President announced that appointment,
many Kenyans were taken aback, seeing as the only experience Ole Lenku had with
matters security was being searched by guards at the entrance to malls and
other buildings. The rationale for giving him that job was not entirely
understood by many people, but we let it slide and hoped for the best. As it
turned out, that didn’t work out too well.
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| Um... okay, Kenyans are just mean, c'mon! |
It
has been said before that the problem with the Police Service is the command
structures, and not the person heading the organization. I beg to differ.
However much there may be a problem with the way the police conduct their
business, it also requires a charismatic leader, one that inspires confidence, someone
who actually looks like he knows what’s up.
David
Kimaiyo - God bless his heart because I believe he is a good man and he wanted
to do right by his country -, I am sorry to say, struck me as a man who was
overwhelmed by the demands of his office. Whenever he appeared on TV to make a
statement, he looked as clueless as the rest of us. It is little wonder then,
that he became fodder for jokes and parodies because no one took him seriously.
With
the exit of both Ole Lenku and Kimaiyo, the President may have scored political
points by agreeing with Kenyans that fresh eyes are needed in the management of
security in this country. That is what people wanted him to do. He was fast
losing a lot of the political goodwill that he has managed to garner for
himself in the last few months by being hardheaded about it and making the
right statements at the wrong time, such as telling Kenyans that everyone
should take responsibility for their own security and not quite acknowledging
his own government’s failure in fulfilling its constitutional mandate of
PROVIDING and ENSURING security for all citizens. That statement at a time when
we had just lost 28 Kenyans in Mandera and we were looking up to him to give
guidance and direction was not a smart thing to do.
The
next focus should be on fixing whatever the problem is that makes it difficult
for the coordination of operations between the various arms of the Police
Service and the National Intelligence Service (NIS). This story of the NIS
gathering intelligence and passing it on to the cops only for it to be sat on
is not cool. That needs to be dealt with. It doesn’t sound like it’s a hard
thing to do. It just requires goodwill on both sides and a firm talking to by
the President. Preferably when he’s in a foul mood and he’s banging tables and
glaring at everyone with bloodshot eyes. That should get the job done.
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| These ones. |
Insecurity
is a problem for everyone in this country, whether brought about by terrorists
or by small boys hijacking public service vehicles and spoiling everyone’s day.
I agree with Uhuru that we should all take personal responsibility for security
instead of simply being passive victims and hoping for the best.
I
know President Kenyatta means well for this country and he wants to be a
successful President. He has done well so far, but if this crisis continues, it
might undo all the good he has done.
I
wish him well.
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Those
making all manner of noise about Uhuru Kenyatta’s PR machine nini nini should
take a chill pill. They should understand that the President is a politician
and he understands his brand very well. He has managed to package himself as a
Man of The People. He enjoys mingling with ordinary citizens, shaking hands,
taking selfies, laughing heartily at everyone’s jokes, etc.
People
respond to that and they love him as a person. If he gets a grip on this
insecurity story, doesn’t trip up on other things and generally doesn’t give
roots to the opposition’s agenda (getting rid of him), 2017 will be a walk in
the park for Brand Uhuru.
Let’s
give him his due. He’s probably the smartest politician of his generation.
