By Joab Apollo
Just a day after the Kenyan government deported Deputy President William Ruto’s Turkish confidant on grounds of being a terrorism financier, President Uhuru Kenyatta on Tuesday held a meeting at State House, Mombasa, with opposition politicians, a move widely viewed as part of his spirited effort to clip the wings of his embattled deputy.
The meeting brought together leaders of the defunct National Super Alliance (NASA) led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, an outfit that bitterly fought against Kenyatta in the 2017 presidential election.
While State House Spokesperson Kanze Dena issued a press statement offering that the meeting’s key agenda was the ravaging COVID-19 pandemic and national cohesion, political analysts were quick to note the sidestepping of Deputy President William Ruto as an indication that the motive was political.
“Among the subjects discussed by the leaders were COVID-19’s impact on the country and how to revamp the economy, and importance of the maintenance of peace, unity and national cohesion.” Stated Dena.
Ever since the famous March 2018 between President Kenyatta and Opposition Leader Raila Odinga, Dr. Ruto has not spared any opportunity to attack government policies, terming them retrogressive and aimed at eroding the democratic gains the country has made over the past decades. He has even made the boldest step of forming his own political party, the United Democratic Alliance (UDA), on whose ticket he intends to seek the presidency in 2022 general election.
This has put him at a collision course with allies of President Kenyatta who have promised to teach him an unforgettable political lesson. Ruto’s allies lament that the president betrayed their man by joining forces with Odinga, whom they now view as his preferred successor instead of Ruto whom he promised the coveted seat in the run up to the shambolic 2013 presidential election.
Kenyan politics is ethnic based, and by bringing regional leaders together, President Kenyatta is seen to be shutting the door to the presidency for his deputy.
Ruto, however, remains unscathed. He has launched a countrywide campaign to promote his Bottom top economic model to the populace. He opines that a time has come for the sons and daughters of the commoners, christened by his political camp as hustlers, to wrestle the country’s leadership mantle from dynastic families.