Gema may erode Uhuru’s appeal on national stage

Friday’s Limuru meeting that was intended to unite the Gema community behind Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta over the International Criminal Court indictments may have unintended consequences.

It is likely that the meeting managed to demonstrate the strength of Mr Kenyatta’s backing within his community.

However, other groups may be looking askance as what appears like a return of the powerful Gema movement of the 1970s that sought to control the national, political and economic arena at the expense of other communities.

Within the G7 Alliance that brings together Mr Kenyatta, fellow ICC suspect William Ruto, Saboti MP Eugene Wamalwa, Matuga MP Chirau Mwakwere and other putative community leaders uniting against a common foe — Prime Minister Raila Odinga — the Limuru II declaration and the fiery speeches at the meeting evoked uncomfortable silence.

Many may have interpreted the apparent building of a Gema laager determined to retain the presidency after President Kibaki’s impending exit as an indication that central Kenya leaders have their own agenda from which their G7 allies are excluded.

The Limuru meeting was not about mobilising Kenyans in support of The Hague-bound quartet — Mr Kenyatta, Mr Ruto, former Public Service head Francis Muthaura and radio presenter Joshua Sang — but uniting the Kikuyu against perceived enemies.

While Mr Odinga, the ICC and the British government were singled out for special condemnation, it was clear that speakers at the meeting were primed to work up Kikuyu emotions against a whole range of supposed foes dating back to the colonial era.

Carefully crafted keynote speeches by retired bishops Lawi Imathiu and Peter Njenga presented a picture of a Gema community under siege.

In pointing the finger at Mr Odinga over post-election violence, the speakers also seemed to have overlooked that at the time he stands accused of pushing calls for “mass action” in protest against the presidential election results, he was firmly in alliance with Mr Ruto in ODM.

Reducing the ICC cases to a Kikuyu issue is one of the things that has irked Mr Nick Salat, the secretary-general of Mr Kenyatta’s Kanu party.

“In matters ICC, let there be justice for both the accused and the victims in equal measure acceptable through a lawful process for the whole country,” Mr Salat wrote in a statement issued yesterday, “and not a regional approach in this regard”.

He concluded: “Kanu sticks to bring together Kenyans from all walks of life regardless of tribe, race, religion, age and regions and social standing to strive to build a cohesive nation for the good of all its people”.

That statement was a clear renunciation of the Gema-centric outcome of the Limuru meeting that sought to rally the community behind the party chairman.

Responding to the statement by Mr Salat, Mr Kenyatta’s spokesman Munyori Buku said:

“According to the Kanu constitution, the party’s spokesman is the chairman. Others can only pronounce themselves on official party matters when the chairman delegates the role.

“Mr Kenyatta has called a national delegates conference scheduled for Friday on party compliance.”

What angered Mr Salat most, however, was the announcement at Limuru that Mr Kenyatta would in 30 days reveal to the Gema community his party of choice for the next elections.

The obvious conclusion was that Mr Kenyatta was set to dump Kanu, with Mr Salat noting that anyone would have expected him to confirm that his party of choice is Kanu.

It has been an open secret since the last elections that once Mr Kenyatta went into alliance with President Kibaki to get the Deputy PM slot, he has had little time for Kanu and was more interested in PNU or whatever vehicle the Gema community settles on.

This brought him into open conflict with some key figures in Kanu, notably Mr Gideon Moi, the son of former President Moi, and his point man at the party headquarters, Mr Salat.

Recently, however, Mr Kenyatta has called a series of meetings that indicated he was going back to Kanu, a move that pleased one of his key backers, the former president.

However, his plans for a return home have cooled in recent weeks, amid indications that Kanu would be a hard sell in central Kenya.

In recent days, there has been talk that Mr Kenyatta’s allies are working to register a new party to provide his ticket for the next elections.

The new party would work closely with Mr Ruto’s URP and New Ford Kenya ahead of the elections.

Mr Salat seized the virtual confirmation at the Limuru meeting to take Mr Kenyatta to task, not just on the party issue but also on the Gema community’s designs that might be viewed with suspicion among the Kalenjin, the community that was Kanu’s former bastion.

Mr Gideon Moi might well seize this in the coming days to not only complete his stalled plans to take the Kanu leadership from Mr Kenyatta, but also as a weapon to eat away at Mr Ruto’s formidable support base in the Rift Valley.

Macharia Gaitho is managing editor, special projects. [email protected]