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Parliamentary Nominations Promise a Great Test
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- Published on Sunday, 22 July 2007 21:33
For the first time in Gusii history, a presidential contender has emerged who is viewed across the land as serious enough to make an impression nationally.
Kitutu Masaba MP George Anyona may have run for president twice - in 1992 and 1997 on the ticket of the Kenya Social Congress - but the fabled rebel, considerably mellowed since, was no more than a fringe candidate.
Enter Simeon Nyachae, former chief secretary, wealthy businessman and industrialist, and a forceful and aggressive politician, and everyone takes notice.
Nyambuche (the grey-haired sage) as the locals affectionately refer to him, will clearly be a decisive factor in the coming elections. Mr Nyachae has been a critical factor in Kisii politics since he retired from the powerful position of Chief Secretary in 1987.
He first signalled his interest in Nyaribari Chache in 1988. But this was the one-party era and President Moi's establishment, already wary of his intentions, denied Mr Nyachae and many of his allies clearance.
Well before the elections, Kisii District had already been polarised into distinct political camps, with the so-called "Four Os" - Dr Zachary Onyonka, Mr Chris Obure, Mr (now Justice) David Onyancha and Mr Andrew Omanga together with Prof Sam Ongeri - primed to resist what came to be seen as Mr Nyachae's invasion.
The pro-Nyachae group included Mr Onyonka's perennial rival, Mr Jimmy Angwenyi, Prof Ongeri's arch-rival, Dr Hezron Manduku, and former assistant ministers Reuben Oyondi and Atebe Marita.
Even as the battle was fought on the ground in Kisii, it was clear from the onset that the anti-Nyachae manoeuvres were directed by his foes at the national level.
Mr Nyachae and his allies were shut out in 1998, either by being denied Kanu tickets outright or losing in the controversial mlolongo (queue-voting) primary election stage.
Even after the polls, Mr Nyachae appeared to be targeted for a great deal of official harassment. He could not address public meetings, while his far-flung business empire was subjected to all manner of bureaucratic interference.
Come the 1992 elections, however, the situation had changed significantly. Kanu, with its back against the wall following the advent of the multi-party system, reached out to Mr Nyachae, who was seriously considering going Opposition and had already held exploratory talks with the Democratic Party's Mwai Kibaki, Ford Kenya's Oginga Odinga and Ford Asili's Kenneth Matiba.
Mr Nyachae, approached directly by President Moi, extracted a handsome prize. One was the release of Mr Anyona and his three co-accused - Prof Edward Oyugi, Prof Ngotho Kariuki and Mr Njeru Kathangu (now Ford Asili MP for Runyenjes) - from jail terms imposed on the basis of sedition charges believed to have been trumped up.
The other was a promise that the powerful politicians he held responsible for his travails over the past five years - a reference to powerful Cabinet Minister Nicholas Biwott - would not again be allowed such leeway.
The deal was sweetest on the local scene: Dr Onyonka and company were to be restrained and Mr Nyachae given full control of the Kanu machinery in the Kisii districts.
The outcome was a virtual clean sweep for Mr Nyachae and his allies at the Kanu nominations. Mr Nyachae himself had few problems dispatching Mr Omanga in Nyaribari Chache. In Nyaribari Masaba, Prof Ongeri lost out to Dr Manduku. The situation was replicated in Bobasi, where Mr Obure was ousted by Mr Stephen Manoti, and in West Mugirango, where Mr Onyancha lost the Kanu nomination ticket to Mr Tom Sagwe. In South Mugirango, Mr David Kombo lost to Mr Reuben Oyondi.
The only notable "survivor" was the acknowledged leader of the anti-Nyachae forces, Dr Onyonka. But when the ailing veteran MP died in 1996, it was a Nyachae candidate, Jimmy Nuru Angwenyi, who triumphed at the by-election.
Things had changed somewhat by the time of the 1997 elections. Mr Nyachae was not to have a free hand. Indeed, the powerbrokers in Kanu were getting concerned that he was growing too big for his boots.
The task of ensuring that Kanu got the "right" candidates this time fell on Prof Ongeri, who started his onslaught by unseating Dr Manduku in Nyaribari Masaba. In Bobasi, Mr Obure made a comeback at the expense of Mr Manoti, who went on to lose the election on a Safina ticket.
In South Mugirango, Mr Kombo beat Mr Oyondi for the Kanu ticket but lost the election to Mr Enock Magara of Ford Kenya; and in North Mugirango, veteran Nyachae ally Marita lost the Kanu ticket to lawyer Joseph Kiangoi.
There would be one major change again: Mr Nyachae, for all practical purposes, is no longer in Kanu and is busy pulling his forces behind a new political vehicle, Ford People.
What is more, his bid for president has come at just about the same time as a euphoric mood for change in the region. It is this mood that has seen many local politicians trickle into Mr Nyachae's new party.
But that, too, has presented a dilemma: should Mr Nyachae side with his well-known allies, who have already trooped into Ford People eyeing the party parliamentary nominations, or should he let the voters have a free hand?
Mr Nyachae insists he does not intend to interfere with the nominations. But these sentiments are not shared by some of the aspirants, who fear that those close to him could use this to block them from getting the Ford People ticket.
This problem is almost certain to be witnessed in South Mugirango, where incumbent James Magara and Mr Oyondi are both known to be close to Mr Nyachae.
There is little doubt that at the presidential level, the region will vote for Mr Nyachae almost to a man. But whether this will be replicated at the parliamentary level remains the big question as the Kisii people, albeit closely-knit, are fiercely independent.
Things could be further complicated by the clan element, a potent and powerful factor in most areas in the region.
This explains why most aspirants are still holding their cards close to their chests. Besides, there are other equally significant issues.
Tea, for instance, is one of the major cash crops in the region. But the region is served by eight factories only: Kiamokama, Nyansiongo, Nyamache, Tendere, Tombe, Kebirigo, Nyaramba and Nyankoba, which cannot cope with the demand.
Politics has infiltrated the sector, with politicians coming in to support their favourites for directorships in the tea companies.
The pyrethrum sector, too, continues to totter. Pyrethrum prices fell drastically in the late 1970s, forcing many farmers to uproot their crop. The pyrethrum board is currently trying to give incentives such as free seedlings, fertilisers and extension services. But things are still not what they once were. The chairman of the Pyrethrum Board of Kenya, Mr John Mariaria, is a close relative of Prof Ongeri.
The dairy sub-sector has also been on the edge of the abyss since the onset of problems at the Kenya Cooperative Creameries. The nearest milk factory is in Sotik, 50 kilometres from Kisii town. Maize prices have dropped significantly, with prices plummeting from Sh1,100 to a low of Sh400.
In Nyamira District, the state of the 66-kilometre Kisii-Chemosit road remains a veritable powder keg. A total of Sh520 million of the Sh1.8 billion required has already been allocated for the tarmacking of this road, but work has yet to begin.
But all the pressing economic and social issues, and even the clan factor which is usually so decisive, might this time take second place to the euphoria generated by Mr Nyachae's stab at the presidency.
The choice of MP would ordinarily be settled on issues unique to the individual constituency, though.
But this time around, Mr Nyachae's strategists are taking a leaf out of Mr Kenneth Matiba's 1992 presidential campaign. The "three-piece" strategy meant not only pushing the presidential vote for Mr Matiba, but also for his parliamentary and civic candidates.
This is the kind of onslaught Prof Ongeri, Mr Obure, Mr Kiangoi and other stalwarts of the anti-Nyachae camp will have to counter. It will not be easy. They will be starting from a defensive position, facing accusations that they are traitors to Kisii political aspirations.
