AABTC Has Grabbed Power in Kenya!

[Onyango Oloo]

The AABTC Has Grabbed Power in Kenya!

A very sober digital essay by Onyango Oloo in Nairobi

Part One:

Fellow Kenyans and Friends of Kenya:

We have a government of sorts- the way Idi Amin, Adolf Hitler, Emperor Bokassa and Papa Doc Duvalier had “governments.” And this government will “function” even “efficiently”- the way Pinochet’s and Eyadema’s regimes- not to speak of the despicable Ian Smith and the odious apartheid racists- had “functioning” and “efficient” governments. One of fascist Mussolini's most infamous boasts and outbursts was that during his reign, all trains in Italy ran on time...

This caricature of a cabinet was duly sworn in earlier today:


(Assistant Minister for Local Government (County Councils) Stephen Tarus found himself reading the wrong oath of office and had to call in the assistance of secretary to the Cabinet Francis Muthaura (centre) during the swearing-in at State House, Nairobi.)


za.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=topNews&storyID=2005-12-09T151449Z_01_ALL927095_RTRIDST_0_OZATP-KENYA-20051209.XML&archived=False


www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=31348

Mwangi Kiunjuri ended his fairy tale “rebellion” by showing up on time to be officially reannointed one of Kiraitu’s new deputies. The opportunist par excellence

Mukhisa Kituyi shredding whatever was left of his tattered and faded “leftist” credentials announced to Kenyans on live television that he values a flag fluttering on his gas guzzler to any considerations of political principle and party unity- this the infamous cheerleader who berated the Balalas and Railas for not adhering to collective responsibility. Despite being passed over, once again by the sexist hand-pickers of the neo-NAK cabinet, our Born in Kenya Nobel Peace laureate decided to straddle the political fence by accepting her lowly assistantship with one breath while skipping the swearing in ceremony with the next step.

Exactly twenty four hours after Kibaki’s latest faux pas and the deluge of rotten tomatoes pelted from twenty or so pairs of would be ministerial hands landed squarely on the Othaya’s MP stunned presidential visage, I believe it is time to move the punditry to another level.

Sure, Kibaki has once again exposed his unzipped trousers on live television; true the Orange team have shouted themselves hoarse about this setback in the Banana camp; all that is literally yesterday’s news, completely passé and old hat.

CONTINUED....

[Onyango Oloo]

Part Two:

In my opinion, I think that Kenyans with a serious brain turned on atop their shoulders must collectively grapple with the following swali of the day:

How do we ensure political stability and deepen the democratic experience and move resolutely towards a new constitutional dispensation?

It matters little to me whether Kibaki can be able to convene a cabinet meeting or not- he probably CAN given his miraculous feat of dictating to Kenyans for two weeks with only Awori and Wako in his skeleton government.

What I would want to safeguard are those wananchi’s victories- the Unbwogable Ushindi over KANU in 2002; the successful completion of the National Constitutional Conference in March 2004 punctuated by the adoption of the so called Zero Draft; the lopsided referendum victory against the government imposed Wako Mongrel.

Let us be clear. In December 2002 Kenyans firmly rejected one party dictatorial rule by ushering to power a 14 party coalition government. In March 2004 Kenyans signaled their unanimous quest for a new constitution by adopting the Bomas Draft. In November 2005 Kenyans signaled to the ruling clique that the days of imperial presidential despotism was over. In December 2005 mainstream politicians, so used to prostituting themselves to the highest state bidder exhibited two things- the whiff of a democratic conscience and the glimpse of a moral backbone.

All this did not and could not take place by mere happenstance.

All the reform leaning headlines in our country between December 2002 and December 2005 have been written through the ink produced by the collective struggles of the wananchi for a new Kenya with a new Katiba; a new Kenya that takes steps to jettison the culture of political ugongaji, utapeli, umalaya, ubarakala na ukabila.

So a robust round of applause for the much berated Wanjiku is entirely in order right about this second…

CONTINUED...

[Onyango Oloo]

Part Three:

Having congratulated the Wanjiku who lives within every Kenyan Mzalendo, we must immediately sound our ever ready firimbi.

Fellow wananchi, in sharp contrast to the abortive 1982 coup attempt, we ARE TODAY, IN DECEMBER 2005 seeing some shady plotters execute a coup de tat right before our very eyes. The coup leaders do not belong in the military and they carried out their conspiracy PUBLICY communicating their decrees openly on live television.

What has been happening since the night of November 21, 2005 has been a carefully crafted takeover of the previous National Rainbow Coalition government by a bunch of amoral and avaricious conspirators who are in the process of consolidating their illegal power grab.

The strange thing about this coup plot is that in our Kenyan case, our previous head of state has been part of the overthrow of the government from the get go. President Kibaki and his coterie of golfing buddies and shameless tribalists have managed to execute a surgical strike against the previously popular and democratically elected NARC government.

As of December 9, 2005 Kenya is officially under a civilian dictatorship that I want to call the AABTC (this is the short form of Andu Aitu Banana Tribal Council).

The referendum proved that the AABTC are thoroughly discredited in 7 out of 8 provinces in Kenya. The mass rejections of the ministerial appointments demonstrated Kenyan politicians who had an ounce of decency left in their normally flip-flopping frames refused to be part of this civilian and tribal coup plot.

The fact that the former president of the now disintegrated NARC formation is the new head of state propped up by the AABTC is temporarily confusing to many people.

CONTINUED...

[Onyango Oloo]

Part Four:

Ordinarily at this juncture, a group of disciplined police officers should have showed up at Mwai Kibaki’s doorstep and arrested him together with John Michuki, Kiraitu Murungi and the rest of their brazen Banana team mates and hauled them to the Nairobi Law Courts to charge them with high treason before remanding him to Kamiti Maximum Security prison until permission to prosecute them has been granted by the Attorney General.

But that is NOT about to happen because not only is Kibaki the President, but his chief legal officer is one of the main organizers of the civilian coup.

So what should ordinary Kenyans do in the face of this illegal, isolated, discredited and thoroughly unpopular regime?

Here is what they SHOULD NOT do:

Nobody should attempt anything foolhardy, adventurist, illegal or STUPID like a real military take over or some hare brained assassination attempt. That frankly will not make a dent or resolve the deepening political crisis in Kenya.

The ONLY WEAPON available to Kenyans is PEACEFUL, DEMOCRATIC MASS MOBILIZATION.

And by “mass mobilization” I am looking beyond thousands running helter skelter in our urban streets.

What I mean is that Kenyans must all collectively stand up and reject this latest monstrosity conjured from the vaults of the NAK Frankenstein Factory.


CONTINUED...

[Onyango Oloo]

Part Five:

How to do this?

First by raising public awareness and heightening civic education among millions of Kenyans so that they can see that even by its own laws, this new Kibaki led cabinet is illegal and undemocratic.

Secondly by ensuring that as many women and men of conscience living outside Kenya- whether they are Kenyans or friends of Kenya- realize that there is a MAJOR reversal of our precious democratic gains going on in Kenya as we speak.

Here is where our democratic minded lawyers, our patriotic journalists and columnists, our battle-hardened political activists should play their historic role.

Kenyans have accumulated such a rich reservoir of democratic experience that I remain confident that popular and sustained democratic pressure will compel the NAK cabal to think twice about solidifying their illegal rule. The most obvious pointer to this is to witness people like Wetangula, Kibwana, Kombo and Ngilu who only yesterday were criss-crossing the country to drum up those rare Banana votes are today absolutely flabbergasted and horrified at the cynical manipulation of the populace by the fat cats huddling in Lucy Kibaki’s ornate kitchen.

Kenya is still a neo-colony and I do not think that her Western masters can countenance an illegal and unpopular regime trying to wield state power over East Africa’s most powerful economy.

If Kibaki has NOT yet completely lost the gift of hearing, let me pass on this message to him via the dozens of secret policemen, intelligence operatives, relatives, business partners and associated cheer leaders reading this essay:

Mheshimiwa Raisi:

Just this once, listen to the Kenyan people instead of your golfing and tribal partners. Just this once hear some of us as we tell you openly that YOU are INVITING Kenyans to OVERTHROW your administration through your callous disregard for our popularly and democratically expressed wishes about the Kenya we want and the future of the constitutional review process. Mr. President, do all of us a favour by calling fresh PARLIAMENTARY elections (which means your job as President is SAFE) so that it is the wananchi, rather than those evil tribalists around you who will provide you with those fresh faces we were all hoping you would incorporate into your regime. You have the power to rise above tribal politics and move beyond the parochial interests of the Mount Kenya region. This is the time to demonstrate that mettle.

And to the Orange Democratic Movement:

The political crisis currently engulfing Kenya has moved beyond the fruity confines of the referendum standoffs and its associated bile and acrimony. You have witnessed Yes diehards like Kombo and Kibwana reject ministerial appointments in a government they have spent years defending. There is something else happening in Kenya beyond the cacophony and colloquy of the deaf unleashed by the Wako Mongrel. This is the time that your leadership must demonstrate that they are made of Statesmen and Stateswomen rather than just garden variety politicians thirsting for power. Do you have the wherewithal in embracing the disaffected would be ministers and assistant ministers? Do you have the fortitude to resist dancing on any political graves but instead sincerely seek out President Kibaki and his NAK coup plotters in principled discussions anchored on the need for a new Katiba, rather than horse trading for cabinet posts?

And to those ordinary Kenyans reading this:

Is it possible to remain SANE and SOBER shunning any demagogic attempts at futile anarchy and pointless nihilism?

With those questions, I retire to my waiting bed.

Onyango Oloo
Nairobi

[politicalmaniac]

As usaul you encapusalate the feelings (in my case feelings of rage) that course through the beings of the human who refers to him/herself as Kenyan

What gaul! eh! Kibki just doesnt get it!
What is it with this man?

ODM should really go back to the drawing boards and come up with a tenable, agreable, principle driven strategy for both short term in parliament (? pushing for snap poll) and long term for '07.

They then should shephard in the new constitution for I dont see this happening in the Kibaki regime

[kamalet]

I think we all had our own wish lists on who should have been in Kibaki's cabinet, but unfortunately none of us is constitutionally mandated to appoint a cabinet bu Kibaki himself, and that mandate is derived from all those of us who willingly or deceivedly went and cast their vote for him as President of Kenya.

At this point in time, I would be more interested in whether these appointees will deliver on the promises of the Kibaki government upon which we cast our votes. Frankly, if Maina Kamanda can resolve the mess at KFF, then he will have done better that Balala and Ayacko, and at the moment I do not have any higher hopes for him.

If Dr. Mohamed Kuti can finally work out a policy for Kenya's youth in his ministry ( and I think he will for he got a very competent Permanent Secretary who has worked with the youth many years), then we can see hope for the youth of this country.

I think this digital essay by Al Kags helps people cast away their eyes from politics and see how Kenya did when it ignored politics and went to work
www.mambogani.com/forums/index.php?s=6cab1f643e63b0e8798f589d04e82684&showtopic=5149


But on this tribal based Gikuyu cabinet (as Oloo suggests), I think the jury is still out. They will deliver if they are capable and fail if they are the incompetents they are being painted as.

This description is what tells you about the many closeted tribalist that abound amongst us, because if ministers perform because of their tribes, just how many roads did Raila build in Luo Nyanza - nothing, not even the Nakuru - Kisumu road would get repaired. Consequently, linking ministers to tribes as opposed to merit is what marks you all out.

If this essay was about the competence of Kiraitu in the Energy Ministry and not his mother tongue as Oloo would like us to debate, then it would have been a good debate. Sadly, we can only see tribes!!