Campaigns have officially began and politicians on both sides of the divide are leaving nothing to chance.
While rallying Kenyans to reelect him, President Uhuru Kenyatta is riding on the development projects initiated by his administration. Work on some of the mega projects is ongoing, if given another chance, he will ensure they are completed.
These projects have transformed the lives of Kenyans. The standard gauge railway, launched last week, is one of them.
But his main challenger and NASA presidential candidate Raila Odinga reads from a different script. He argues that Jubilee should not be reelected because it has failed to implement ‘all projects’ UhuRuto lined up during the 2013 campaigns.
Raila has told his supporters ‘if you elect me, I will be like Joshua and will help you cross the River Jordan into the Promised Land’. But how come he did not take them there when he was Prime Minister? Does he expect Kenyans to believe him now?
Raila and his brigade attempted to sabotage Jubilee’s efforts to supply laptops to standard one pupils. He rallied striking teachers to demand the funds set aside for the laptops be diverted to increase their salaries and allowances. Despite these challenges, e-learning has been introduced in a number of schools.
Raila would have us believe Jubilee has done little in constructing and expanding roads. UhuRuto have built 1,500km of road. No other government achieved this. How many kilometres did Raila and President Kibaki build when they led the grand coalition government?
Teachers downed their tools when Raila was PM. How come he did not advise his co-principal, Kibaki, to fix this recurring problem once and for all?
Jubilee has expanded electricity connectivity, provides free maternity care, has scrapped KCPE and KCSE exam fees, and equipped hospitals with modern state-of-the-art facilities.
A well-known senator, during a NASA rally in Kakamega, said Uhuru should go home because ‘he has failed’ to stop his allies and relatives from raiding the public coffers. He mentioned the name of Uhuru’s sister.
Yes, for a senator running for governor, this was a good platform to endear himself to the voters.
After listening to his attack, two questions came to my mind. Where is the evidence of looting? Why would he attack a private citizen who does not have a forum to respond?
Well, as a senator and a key ally of Raila, he believes he enjoys immunity. That no authority will dare ask him to substantiate his allegations.
Cord dragged the name of Uhuru’s sister into the Mafya House scandal. This was after a raw and an interim financial report prepared by the Ministry of Health was leaked to the media. It had listed a number of companies that had been awarded tenders. The CS, who had commissioned the audit, disowned the report and roundly accused the internal auditor of an ulterior motive.
This report had been cooked and doctored. There is no evidence that money was stolen. If those making these claims think otherwise, let them submit the evidence. They are yet to do so. The CS defended Uhuru’s sister, saying the tender awarded to the company associated with her was aboveboard and it delivered all the goods.
The law does not protect politicians who make unsubstantiated allegations and engage in malicious campaigns and character assassination. I call upon the institutions created to deal with inciters and those peddling rumours to up their game.
Mutua is a political analyst and blogger