It’s Kenyan politics when the first item in the recipe is tribe. Kenyan politics is extremely tribal; the loud chemistry between a rogue politician and his people is tribe. But the game is dynamic, tribal politics is now shifting from being a duel between one tribal chief and the other to any popular tribal chief setting up other close tribes against one another.
DP William Ruto is the originator of this new style of tribal politics. Luo and Luhya vote blocs have over the times voted in the same pattern but in preparations to win 2022 general polls, Ruto sees it appropriate to divide and rule the two blocs. He began by secretly proposing a Eugene Wamalwa candidature in Nairobi gubernatorial race in 2017. It did not work but at least he showed the Luhya nation some fake political love.
Wamalwa’s candidature was dead on arrival. He was dismissed as being too soft when the city needed a near violent or just the Sonko type of a person. Ruto did not give up, he kept scheming in that perspective, setting up two tribes to disrupt their voting pattern is the deal alongside winning possible swing votes. Western and Central are the major swing votes ahead of 2022.
Western leans more on the side of Raila Odinga, possible top contender in 2022 presidential race. Ruto is doing all within his schemes to win Western from Odinga and inherit Central from President Uhuru Kenyatta. To win western he has orchestrated Football Star McDonald Mariga candidature to face ODM in the Kibra parliamentary seat that fell vacant after the demise of Hon Ken Okoth.
Kibra is an ODM stronghold but giving them a run for their money is a ‘statement’ enough to caution the natives that the new mayor is about preparing to take over the town. Jubilee Party through Ruto or Project Mariga is seriously challing ODM in their home tuff but majory creating a rift between them to disrupt their voting pattern.
Ruto is very serious about with Western and Central vote. Western law makers are always spending a weekend in his Sugoi home, he is always giving out tens of millions as tithes to churches in central Kenya. His Team Tanga Tanga networks are activated all over the country.
It’s the dirty politics; negative ethnicity can pass for thinking by bigger heads, destroy lives, break families and set tribes against each other. 2007 can be the manifestation but people leading from behind loud it for its share of prime time news, confusion and creation of opportunity to steal and the voice of the public at the ballot box.
Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga is known for bringing together different ethnic factions to beat a common enemy. One or two major tribes. Coining of tribal majorities as Kalenjin and Kikuyu under the tyranny of numbers myth divided the country further but gifted proponents with lucrative government jobs and opportunities to steal from public coffers. Mariga may not win the Kibra seat but his face off with ODM or Luo candidate will affect how Luos and Luhyas vote.
