WHEN it comes to the war on drug abuse, alcoholism and tobacco, John Mututho’s name is second to none.
The former Naivasha MP has singlehandedly stood firm and pushed for the introduction of morality insofar as alcohol consumption is concerned.
It is Mututho who, in the 10th Parliament, conceived and spearheaded the adoption of the Alcohol Drinks and Control Act.
The law, commonly known as the ‘Mututho Rules’, regulates the sale of alcohol and drinking hours.
It also introduced new alcohol-packaging guidelines requiring alcohol be packaged in glass bottles instead of sachets.
“I am proud of my work,” he says, pointing out that he would tighten regulations on alcohol consumption if he had his way.
Mututho’s passion in the war on alcohol was boosted in 2013, when President Uhuru Kenyatta appointed him to chair the National Campaign Against Drug Abuse (Nacada).
He says the anti-drug war is predicated on two suppressions: Supply and demand.
“The war on supply suppression has been lost – not just in Kenya, but around the world,” says Mututho, who has declared his interest in becoming the next governor of Nakuru at the 2017 general election.
He regrets that the drug menace is worst in universities and other institutions of higher learning.
“Lack of patrols in the universities, increased intake and the emergence of social media have made drug abuse go digital, making it hard to monitor,” he says.
Despite his hard-nosed reputation in the war on drugs, Mututho says it has never been easy, especially during his time at Nacada.
He regrets there is a powerful clique, both in government and out of it, that has made it completely difficult to wage the war on drug abuse.
“Their focus is to fight people like me, whose only mission is to fight the drug abuse menace in our midst.”
Lamentably, he points out, even pharmacists have abandoned their professional ethics and some of them are major players in the smuggling of drugs.
“Pharmacists are part of an extremely powerful cartel that is selling drugs through prescription.”
He says pharmacists are part of the cartels that have ensured Nacada does not discharge its mandate effectively.
Mututho believes he has what it takes to take Nakuru to greater heights of development.
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IN FIVE MINUTES
1955: Born in Naivasha, Nakuru county.
1964: Started formal school at Brendans Primary School, Turi, Molo. He sat his CPE in 1970.
1971: Michinda High School, Elburgon, for his O-levels. He did KCE in 1974.
1975: Egerton College, Njoro, graduated with a diploma in Range Management in 1978.
1979: Ministry of Livestock, served as Range Management Officer in Kajiado, Meru, Isiolo and at headquarters.
1980: University of Nairobi, graduated with Bachelor of Science, Agriculture, in 1984. He returned to the Ministry of Livestock, where he worked until 1987.
1987: Latrob University, Australia, did both a Master’s degree and postgraduate diploma in Environmental Economics and graduated in 1990.
1990: He returned to the Ministry of Livestock but quit soon after to venture into consultancy.
2002: Ran for Naivasha MP on the Kanu ticket. He lost. But he won the same seat five years later on Kanu.
2013: Lost the Naivasha parliamentary seat on the Narc ticket.
QUOTES
2015: “The problem is that Nacada does not have an enforcement arm to crack down on outlets selling alcohol and hard drugs to underage persons. Every other agency of government has an enforcement wing, from KRA to KPA to the county governments, it is only Nacada that does not have askaris to raid such places and enforce the law.”
2016: “The NTSA has been doing things very badly. Some of the things they do are not pegged on any law. The officers have been abusing their power in so many ways. The transport appeals tribunal will work to tame the excesses of the authority.