Moves by Anti-Ruto Brigade Quite Desperate and Dangerous

Fear mongering and mudslinging is the latest move by anti-Ruto brigade within the Kenyan political arena. The past seven days have seen hordes of photo-shopped pictures and video clips dangerously doing rounds on WhatsApp groups, Facebook posts, and have thus spread far and wide. Many a pretender to political commentary have made nonsense of themselves trying to push a narrative from the clips and photos while pro Ruto army did not hesitate from answering back with their own political jabs without contrition. It has been a messy week to say the least in the political streetwise.

Of major interest to me is the clip in which William Ruto is on JKL answering a question from veteran Koinange on the land clauses in the then proposed draft constitution. Ruto give his very unqualified interpretation of the land clauses in the draft as he explained why he was opposed to the draft. In there he mentions that what he understood the clauses to imply was that some non natives would be required to move from lands and leave them to natives in which case he uses Kitale and mentions a few tribes to drive his point home. Suffice to say that he was wrong in his lay interpretation and his fears were utterly unfounded. 

However, the way the clip has been truncated to sell a narrative is not only desperate but also displays a dire desperateness on the part of the anti-Ruto team. It appears to me like there is a feeling of hopelessness in that camp in their quest for an alternative narrative to the Hustler’s bottom up economic model which has attracted a huge chunk of lower and middle class. The dire need for that counter narrative is sending that camp into panic mode as elections draw ever closer and closer at a pace that looks like a week every day. I must add that it’s a bed they made for themselves with the comfort of a handshake and BBI and so they must sleep on it. If they had wanted, they could have made the best of both worlds as the official opposition and at time major partners in the government. They did not.

The clip is dangerous. It shows the lengths some of us are willing to go just to gain some advantage in politics and it doesn’t matter to them whether the national fabric is torn in the process. That video can mislead some Ruto supporters to start a move to root out non natives in the misunderstanding that that was what Ruto said. Hence, the narrative, if bought, can lead to the destruction of the very lives of the people it seeks to protect by not electing the Deputy President. If the narrative is not bought (it likely won’t be) is a bad smack on the face of the anti-Ruto brigade. It is imperative that his political opponents craft a proper counter narrative devoid of the dangers posed by their current flirtations with trouble. Popcorn please!

This is the point; William Ruto, like him on hate him has tremendously influenced how we do politics and what we say during campaigns. He has largely brought the country to a point where we can have genuine conversation on what should be our approach to economic management and as they say Mghalla muue na haki yake umpe, the DP has his sins like everyone in the field. He has, nonetheless, brought us here where we can discuss issues. Let us not pull all of us down in the desperate desire to see him fail to clinch the presidency. It seems like the DP is poised to singlehandedly pull a 2002 moment with his non tribal hustler movement and if he does, I hope he stays true to his assertions. If he pulls this off, it will be a step in the right direction as far as rooting out tribalism is concerned. If he walks the talk, William can create a sense of nationhood and make all of us understand that the principles that make us Kenyans are greater than the feelings that make us our tribes. Here’s hoping and praying.