Ol Kalou poll makes 'Limuru Four' inevitable

This week, I am in Rabat, Morocco, where many Kenyans here are overly curious about the political mood back home, especially with rising tensions in Mt Kenya. 

Ahead of next week’s Ol Kalou by-election, which the electoral commission has threatened to call off over alleged bribery and violence, the war of words between the likes of Senator John Methu and former Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria is disheartening to watch.

The two hardline camps – one allied to President William Ruto and another backing DCP chief Rigathi Gachagua – are exhibiting irreconcilable differences, with Mr Methu claiming he respects the President but doesn’t fear him. Mr Kuria, meanwhile, asserts that DCP leaders are n********ers.

But as Mt Kenya’s bigshots go for each other’s jugular, no one really fathoms why a region so rich in political capital can ruin itself through outright confusion one year to the General Election. Is this the uncertainty ‘Murima’ wants to build its future on?

I’ll tell you for free. The vote-rich region squandered the opportunity to secure a realistic post-2027 future the moment it joined the ‘victimhood’ bandwagon of Mr Gachagua. The ‘truthful man’ is a blabbermouth driven purely by sour grapes. Impeached, yet still refusing to accept and move on.

Perhaps Ms Martha Karua would have been a better kingpin (or is it queenpin?) for the region. She’s the ‘SI unit’ of political purity. The ‘Iron Lady’ may lack the loudest rhetoric but her sobriety is the wherewithal Mt Kenya would have needed today to navigate the wilderness it faces.

Now, things are bad. To use lawyer Nzau Musau’s favourite jest, nikubaya (it’s unsalvageable)! Without unity, the mountain will chill in the Opposition for at least 100 years to come. Why so? Beyond ‘one-term’ and ‘Kasongo this, Kasongo that’ in rallies, I see no evidence of Mr Gachagua’s charming strategy that will unseat Dr Ruto. Even unveiling the flag-bearer has become rocket science for his camp.

Moreover, Mr Riggy G is showing signs of burnout. His declaration of a 45-day retreat in Wamunyoro ostensibly to strategise, spoke volumes. Yet before the hiatus ends, he’s back at rallies. Last week, he was in Ithimbari in Meru to receive a Prado gift. Meanwhile, his allies Mr Justin Muturi, Mr Peter Munya, Mr Mithika Linturi, Mr Joe Nyutu, Mr Karungo Thangwa, Ms Njeri Maina, Mr John Kaguchia and Mr Irungu Nyakera among others, are all huffing and puffing.

I’d suggest that the Mt Kenya leadership urgently reconvenes in Limuru, the hallowed ground where the House of Mumbi has traditionally congregated to deliberate on politics. While Limuru Three of May 2024 was seen as tribal posturing, it sparked critical discussions. Limuru Four should offer a chance to reflect and face the 2027 snares. But the talks must be more strategic than ethnic. 

Limuru Three declared that Mr Uhuru Kenyatta was still the region’s supremo. Limuru Four should now clarify whether the former president remains the kingpin or whether Mr Gachagua has dethroned him. Also, fresh talks will allow Ms Karua, Mr Mwangi wa Iria, Mr Irungu Kangata, Mr Mwangi Kiunjuri, Mr Kabando wa Kabando, Mr Dennis Waweru, Mr Ndindi Nyoro, Mr Kimani Wamatangi, Mr James Nyoro and other swing voices to be heard.

Chinua Achebe said that community gatherings aren’t about survival but kinship. “A man who calls his kinsmen to a feast doesn’t do so to save them from starving. They have food. When we gather, it is not because of the moon...we unite because it is good for kinsmen.”

That unity must be matched with caution. Kiambu, Murang’a, Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Nyandarua, Meru, Embu, Tharaka-Nithi and Laikipia counties have roughly 5.7 million votes. But these numbers are void when choices are driven by personal grudges. It’s like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.

The bloc least needs the unraveling clash of egos. Let Ol Kalou prompt atonement and a strategy focused on 2032 since 2027 is settled in President Ruto’s favour. Let the ‘Kumira Kumira’ to Limuru start.

-The writer is a communications practitioner.