Re: Of eating your cake and having it too

Mr. Odhiambo,

Why are we trying to be blind to very simple issues? In relation to Raila's admission that he -as a cabinet minister- prevailed upon his fellow cabinet ministers to get Moi off the hook; and my reaction to that, you said: "Now, my take cannot be on Raila. Kenyans have never elected him to be the Hon President of the Republic of Kenya. My take has always been with the person I gave the job; the person I voted for to be my president."

How I wish you maintained that stance consistently! But you -like a few other Kenyans- don't. When John Githongo released his recordings of former Minister for Justice and Constitutional affairs Kiraitu Murungi pleading with him (Githongo) to 'Ngo Srow' on corrupt individuals, we were quick to accuse Kiraitu of obstruction of justice. Now we have Raila Odinga making claims in public that he obstructed justice but what do we do? We applaud him! The best excuse so far is that Raila was not the president of Kenya so he shouldn't be held accountable for sheltering Moi and handing over Kabarnet Gardens to him!

What is good for Raila should also be good for Kiraitu. Both were ministers and they used their 'NDOCKETS' to obstruct justice. If we let one off the hook then we should extend the same to his buddie.

We need to hold people accountable for their own actions irrrespective of their status in siciety. That means form the president to the clerk at the local office. That we did not elect the traffic police officer does not give her immunity from being held accountable should she use her position in society to stop the wheels of justice. Kenya is bigger than the president.

Most people assume that if Kibaki is clean, then Raila should be dirty and vise versa. It is through this angle that Banda Nyaware tore into me saying: "Mosaisi it is intriguing you identify Raila Odinga as the one obstructing justice and not the very man Kenyans elected to be in charge."

In deed Kibaki has in many occasions obstructed justice. I can go on to list a number of such cases. They include but are not limited to: the nolle prosequi that was passed in the case where Lucy was caught on camera slapping around journalists like little boys; refusal to implement findings by the Ndung'u commission on land; and the Armenian Brothers travesty of an inquiry. But this does not mean that Raila and other Kenyans cannot be guilty of obstructing justice too.

Banda also said: "Raila's critics are saying he 'must be feared'. They want to make people believe that once Raila becomes the President, he is going to be vindictive against people like Moi who detained him for more than ten years and caused his family and a whole community unimaginable harm. When Hon. Charity Ngilu got boood (booed) by mourners at Kalonzo mother's funeral, she had implied this same sentiment."

We are justified to harbor such a fear. Indeed Raila's take on corruption is highly dictated by politics and not an inherent quest to build a just Kenya. This is clearly evident when he confessed to a predominantly Kalenjin audience of helping Moi meet kibaki, and using his cabinet post to help Moi evade justice. Raila was trying to reap the political capital of his investment in Moi. And that is why Raila said, "Moi should be grateful. I organised his first meeting with Kibaki at State House. He should thank me by not attacking ODM"

This clearly puts Raila in the same boat as Kibaki who has recently been warming up to Moi.

Other cases of twisting corruption allegations to meet political needs include the vilification of Saitoti followed by the vindication of Saitoti and followed by the vilification of Saitoti. These events went hand in hand with the vindication of Musalia, followed by the vilification of Musalia and the final vindication of Musalia. Raila was summersaults arguing -as usual- that he was privy to information that vilified or vindicated these two saints-turned-devils-turned-saints. All this time he was preying on our short memory span. But as Bob Marley sang, you can fool some people sometimes but you can't fool all the people all the time.

If indeed Raila's own words -that he helped Moi retain the grabbed Kabarnet Gardens and evade prosecution over is role in Goldenberg- cannot count as obstruction of justice then we need a new definition of the term.

Let us put tribalism aside as see the thieves for what they are. This notion of "protecting our own" is making the war on corruption impossible.

Mosaisi
http://mosaisi-fries-em.blogspot.com/