• Kamanda said the DP's main undoing is that he does not have an iota of respect for his boss, the President.
• He said the Constitution created many worthless positions and devolving corruption by channeling unmonitored funding to the counties.
Image: NDICHU WAINAINA
Deputy President William Ruto will not be able to defy history and succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta.
That's what nominated MP Maina Kamanda told the Star on Monday. He and Nyeri Town MP are considered the faces of the pro-Uhuru Kieleweke movement.
Kamanda repeated what others have observed: that Kenya's seconds in command, save for Daniel Moi, never inherit power from their bosses.
And it's doubtful that VP Moi would have ascended to power had founding President Jomo Kenyatta not died in 1978, he said.
In an exclusive interview with the Star at his home in Ol Kalou, Kamanda said even Kibaki who once deputised Moi failed twice, while Uhuru Kenyatta failed once before they captured the coveted seat.
The legislator said that if Ruto is to defy history, he must get unqualified support from President Kenyatta.
This can only happen if Ruto humbly submits to the President and stops frustrating his agenda by premature 2022 campaigning, the legislator said.
But Ruto, Kamanda said, has failed the humility test.
At my age, I have seen many vice presidents. But this one does not have an iota of respect for his boss. When Uhuru says this, he says the opposite. Any mature person will look down on him.
He said that instead of respecting the President and aggressively backing the Big Four agenda, Ruto has mobilised some leaders to campaign with him.
“You saw them saying Raila should commit to conceding defeat if he loses in 2022. Three years to elections, when the President is preaching his agenda and discouraging early campaigns, you are saying if someone is defeated he should concede ... He is campaigning day and night as if the elections were in December," Kamanda said.
He said Ruto is panicking because he will have burnt out by election time. He is pushing his people too much as no one can sustain campaigns for three years.
"Besides, he does not know where he will be in three years, hence, he should not take 2022 as a matter of life and death, Kamanda said.
He said the DP's Tangatanga squad should tone down their shrill rhetoric.
Contrary to what many people believe, Kamanda said that he himself holds no grudges against the Deputy President.
He said the Kieleweke team, however, does hate Ruto’s behaviour because he thinks he is President Kenyatta's equal due to their power-sharing arrangement.
“At my age, I have seen many vice presidents. But this one does not have an iota of respect for his boss. When Uhuru says this, he says the opposite. Any mature person will look down on him,” Kamanda said.
He said the Central MPs in the Tangatanga team need to learn from history that every election 95 per cent of the incumbents are not reelected. But God may favour those who mend their ways and support the Big Four.
The legislator attributed the problems bedevilling the nation, including massive corruption and the unmanageable wage bill to the Constitution. It created many valueless positions, including 772 nominated MCAs and 47 woman representatives who do nothing but make noise, he said.
Further, Kamanda said, the current Constitution led to the devolution of funds to the counties without proper monitoring, leading to theft.
A referendum through the BBI initiative, he said, is the only remedy to unite and harmonise the country.
Kamanda said Kenya has 43 tribes, hence Central people should not talk only of Raila Odinga, as politics is dynamic. Once Raila and Uhuru were rivals; today Uhuru call Raila his "brother".
(Edited by V. Graham)