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Citizen Weekly

Sunday 29 March 2015

What next after Maasais give Jap a cold shoulder?

If former president of Tunisia Ben Ali who abdicated the throne in 2011 and sought political asylum together with his entire in Saudi Arabia lived in Kenya, he would have offered some fatherly advice to the government on the power of the people.
The revolution that drove Ben Ali from power after 24 uninterrupted years was triggered by unemployed 26-year-old graduate Ali Bouaziz who set himself ablaze in December 2010 infront of a government building because of frustrations after being slapped by a policeman for lack of a legal permit to hawk vegetables in the streets.  The uprising that was later  named the Arab Spring spread like bushfire in the neighbouring Algeria and Egypt.
The dust has now settled after Elijah Memusi Kanchori of ODM floored Jap candidate Patrick Tutui in a fiercely contested by-election in Kajiado Central.  Whatever the margin, voters in Kajiado Central have spoken loud and clear to their indignation of a government that only dangles goodies after sensing defeat. If the Maasai community can rebel against Jubilee what next? that is the question among political analysts with bias on Kenya. 
Of all the mini by-elections that have been held in the recent past Kajiado Central was like battling for the presidency given the magnitude of coverage by the media and the manner in which the two opposing camps descended in Kajiado.  The JAP brigade stormed Kajiado with lightning rapidity with helicopters and other heavy government machinery rubbishing the opposition as people of pata potea.
When Jubilee realized that the people were warming up to Elijah Memusi of ODM, they panicked. As if that was not enough, they went a notch higher and influenced the shutting of three major media power houses of Citizen, KTN and NTV and the whole country since independence was darkened
The spill over’s of government destation from neighbouring Narok County in which senator Ole Ntutu organized successful demonstration against alleged corruption deals committed by governor Samuel Tunoi had a direct bearing on voting pattern in Kajiado Central.  People have been disgruntled with a government that abets corruption.Wiliam Ntimama is also not happy.
Another parallel from Narok, the Jubilee government sided with Governor Tunoi who was accused among other things to have kicked out the indigenous from collecting parking fee at Masai Mara game reserve giving it to aliens ‘KAPS’ which is rumored to have origins in Central Province.
It is not JAP that lost in Kajiado, it is William Ruto the Deputy president who has been left in a precarious situation after his URP was swallowed by TNA. He has lost in a region he claims is under lock and key.In short with no contradiction  whatsoever , he has upt the game and is on top of things.
The deputy president need to go back to his drawing board re-assemble his troops and try to figure out the implications of JAP loss in Kiajiado. May be his undoing is the manner he belittles Raila Odinga as Jamaa wa vitendawili whenever he goes. Analysts say, the deputy should leave Raila alone and concentrate on how you will implement what you promised the people of Kajiado during campaigns since they are tax payers too and have a right to be served by the government irrespective of party affiliation. Otherwise the nighbouring Bomet County is the next stop for uprising.

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