MERIT, REGIONS & POLITICAL APPOINTMENTS!
Inspite of the absence of  "formal appointments" in  Kibakis NARC, Weingo PapaF has a  constitutional right to publish his dissatisfaction.  I would like to point out certain political criterias in the "formal and informal" modus of /appointments. 
Formal appointment: 
I)  It would be illogical, then, to assume that the formal requirements for  a plum  job in Kenya is to dangle ones ethnicity. Not so. However, the vital informal factor(s) to determine ones appointment in Kenya is obviously to dangle ones ethnicity. Yes so to speak.
II) The following parameters will help my president to make wise decisions. Unless he so thinks like  the former American president Richard Nixon, and so say " Fuck MoU"  Late in 1971 when Richard Nixon was trying to fill two vacancies on the Supreme Court, he brought up the possibility of nominating Sen. Robert C. Byrd of West Virginia. 
The then Attorney General John Michell told Nixon that American Bar Association ABA would not  approve Byrd as a supreme court Judge because Byrd attended " night law school"  and therefore, he had little experiences as a practicing attorney. This is what Nixon told the AG " Fuck the ABA". 
And from that time on, the president only submitted names of his appointees after he already selected them and publicized them. Nixon the offended the traditional dogma. During the Watergate scandle, ABA was on him like white on rice. It can't go away.
NARC Summit and the so called Memorandum of Understand  MoU are proving to be a risky business for Kibaki to deal with. Kibaki needs to think long and hard before appointing anybody tagged with the " not so qualified label"  He does not need to push for any appointment. 
II) It would be better if the president make his appointments and then let the Summit assumes the role to screening these nominees. I bet my last dime if he dares doing that. But the summit by customs should hold hearings on all appointments, at which time witnesses are heard on deliberations taking place behind closed doors. 
Take for example the nomination of Justice Gicheru, would be perfunctory, the norm of LSK courtesy has for all intents and purposes already determined that Gicheru is the best candidate, yes! but the MoU intent may not determine because Gicheru is not a Luo instead of Chunga. If you remove an eye, you must put back an eye, not something else.  When I say the summit take charge, I don't mean to dimistify the opinion I read  in the commentary of our local daily. 
The summit is not going to interfere with the decisions the president makes. It only means the summit is a watch dog to the president so that  the six Amigo who are screening the peoples C's at the state house don't do something that can embarrass the chief executive. In most cases, the president ( Moi for example) was content merely to fill positions with loyalty and paid no attention to their qualifications and specific Ideologies. 
The former president did not give a hoot about ideology for he did know the meaning of it.
 It is good to appoint people in positions based on their ideologies rather than rewarding loyalties. But a chief executive may discount ideologies because he himself tends to be none ideological. Still others may place factors such as past political loyalty ahead of ideology in selecting leaders.  
Kenyans will expect our new chief  through-t his administration to establish a cohort (summit)  that looks like Kenya. I mean a team reflective of the nation's diverse ethnicity and gender instead of a cohort characterized by any singular ideological perspective like GEMA et al. 
In a nutshell,  rewarding loyalty is not such a bad thing because when you are in such a position such as that one of the chief executive, you definitely have to remember those who endured hard times with you. Those who stuck with Kibaki  vvin DP deserves his generosity, yes! But only in the four categories of qualifications, eg political, professional competence, self selection and the    element of luck.
Political:
Those who stuck hard with Kibaki when he was running the hopeless DP truly deserves something, but only if they were politically active just as much as those who  sacrificed their election ambitions in NARC like Betty Tett, and those who over sacrificed their presidential ambitions like Raila Odinga deserves to be rewarded massively. The above two examples are not uncommon with Kenyans, it would not be considered a mistake. 
Professional Competence:
Merit may mean no more than an association with the chief executive, but those who are outstanding among fellow Kenyans may be rewarded. Even tho' political rule may allow the president to reward only those who were his allies with a plum, traditional codes has created an expectation of some reputation in  professional competence.
 A modern day example of some of these traditional codes are not just warm bodies with professional competence, but a few countries have thier cions like Professor Ali Mazrui, Atieno Odhiambo, Micere Mugo, Ngugi Wa Thiongo, Justus Ogembo, Thomas Odhiambo, Wayoga Ochanda, Ouma Muga, just to mention a few. 
These people are professionally competent in their respective fields, and if I were a Chief Executive, they needed no appointment to visit the State House. I know they will spare me no rode of criticism and political  salvos, but they will  be the best consultants a Chief  Executive ever had in his pocket to rule wisely. Therefore, I will put on a thick skin to endure fireworks, but eventually I will go down in history as the best Chief Kenya ever had.
Self Selection:
For those who are born leaders shyness does not pay. One needs to declare one's intentions. Over here in the U.S. those who are not cowed, those who have confidence in themselves, have been made leaders. I learned it from the Americans believe you me. Even tho' they admire modesty and humility in their leaders, they tend to admire the most those kind of people who are go getters, people  who are over  confidence like Raila Odinga (Agwambo Manwari). 
You can see that in their leaders and their sportsmen. They are always sure of picking up something and beating the crap out of it. When you see an American athlete running his mouth on TV how he is goin' to beat the pulse of of his his opponent in a race, you better believe him. 
When you see an America leader even a dimwit like George Bush running his mouth on TV telling the world that he needs only 7 days to wipe Iraq out of the world map, you better believe that dude. He is not bullshiting. Texan Cows Boys don't  busllshit.Nothing stops him and he will do it with precision. 
In Africa only Ja-Luo have this kind of self confidence, pride and self promotion. That is why I like Tom Ojanga. He does not belittle  himself. He doesn't believe in small things and small talks either......luosy stuff. In things which are political,  Ja-Luo is known not to think small while there are mountains out there to think of, even if he can't move them around, he will have at-least imagined he could. In the west, such  a guy is the man.
Karisa Maitha and Khulundu have an American and Luo blood in them. There is nothing you can do if you stole the money and grabbed the lots. Karisa Maitha is coming for you the same way Bush is going for Saddam, unless  they disarm/       and or return the loot. And you better do it quick. Where could we be if Maitha was the local Minister 24 years ago?  Thank God we now have a Ghost Buster.
 If I were the Chief Executive in Kenya today, I would not reward loyalties. I will look for people who are smartly over confidence, people who have positioned themselves in such a way that when the powers that comes to be, find  themselves ready to to do the job. 
I would look for people like Harrison Wayoga and make them Ambassadors.  Wayoga is the man for that kind of a job, becuase NOT even atomic bomb can stop him.  A Kenyan-who can wind his way amidst racist South to put up  a successful GOP  staging a political beating of opponents NARC style is not a man to mess up with. I'm the best that can ever be.
Elements of Luck:
Unless these appointments becomes more of a science and less of an art, accurate prediction can not be made as to who would be appointed what. There seems to be variables and too many participants in the process. While there seems to be misfortunes that plagued NARC government in the beginning, road accidents, plane accidents etc I still just don't know what the Kenyas constitution is saying on succession. 
When something happens to the president we know that the VP is online to assume that position until sometime later.... What if the minister dies? Who replaces him? As evident with the case of Minister Khalif who left us suddenly. I can only associate this with an element of bad luck.
 However, the reason why we have assistant ministers is to replace or act on behalf of their snrs incase something like that happens- sudden death or disablity? Suppose Khalif was just incapacitated, would Balala still be running two Ministries?
The six million dollar question is then "how comes the Assistant Minister Peter Odoyo was never given a chance to replace his boss"? it looks like he was never fit to assist in that ministry.
Harrison Wayoga,
Albany, GA.

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