Uhuru media men expose President to ridicule

Nothing has lately bared the deep-seated confusion within the Presidential Strategic Communications Unit (PSCU) more than the terrorist attack on Kenya’s security forces in Yumbis, Garissa County last Tuesday.

What followed the brazen attack by Al-Shabaab was a flurry of slip-ups that saw Interior Cabinet Secretary Major-General (rtd) Joseph Nkaissery warn the State House-based outfit.

While Mr Nkaissery blamed the media and social media users for playing a part in the confusion on the casualties among security forces, a curious condolence message in the official PSCU Twitter handle purportedly posted on behalf of President Uhuru Kenyatta was puzzling because the Interior ministry was insisting no lives were lost in the attack.

“I mourn and pray with the family and friends of the police officers who lost their lives in Yumbis. They died protecting us. I salute them,” read the tweet, which was later deleted.

PSCU Director of Digital Dennis Itumbi later took responsibility for the tweet. 

In the end, it turned out that one police officer, Dickens Wakhu, had actually succumbed to injuries.

The Sunday Nation has gathered that Mr Itumbi has since come under intense pressure from the presidency on why he did not verify the information before going public on a matter that has no doubt embarrassed the Jubilee government.

Following the tweet, Mr Nkaissery did not mince his words, warning that not everybody has the authority to report on security matters.

“What happened was a truly confused situation. The fellows at the State House must get this message right. If they misinform the public, we will get hold of them. We are looking at ways of dealing with it,” he said.

PSCU is headed by State House Spokesman Manoah Esipisu. Its directors include Mr Munyori Buku, Mr Eric Ng’eno and Mr Itumbi, Ms Munira Muhammad and Mr James Kinyua. Mr David Mugonyi and Mr Emmanuel Talam work in Deputy President William Ruto’s office.

Those familiar with the goings on at PSCU say that even though Mr Esipisu heads the unit, there is no clear chain of command as some directors act independently. 
Acknowledging the lapses, the National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale said the government should disseminate information from a central place to avoid what he called “comedy of errors”.

“We want the government to speak with one voice and more so on matters of security. The agencies directly overseeing security operations should be the first to inform us, the rest of us can only complement them,” he told the Sunday Nation.

Mr Duale asked the media to also verify information before publishing or broadcasting.

“The media must also countercheck the veracity of the information on security before churning them out lest they play into the hands of the al-Shabaab by spreading fear and despondency,” he said.

But even as Jubilee leaders partly blamed the media for the mess, sources within PSCU say the ill-advised tweet may just be a symptom of a bigger problem exacerbated by the fight for control pitting Mr Esipisu and a section of directors.

In a recent talk show on KTN, Mr Itumbi said that all PSCU directors are independent, suggesting that they are not answerable to Mr Esipisu. This would effectively mean that PSCU is like a military unit with many commanders and variant formations, which exposes it to both enemy and “friendly” fire. 

But it should be recalled that trouble at the PCSU begun the day Mr Kenyatta named Mr Esipisu to take the overall charge.

The Sunday Nation is aware that some directors — who were working with Mr Kenyatta before he became president or were involved in Jubilee campaigns — have never accepted the appointment of Mr Esipisu, a respected former journalist who has had international experience with the African Development Bank and the Commonwealth Secretariat. In their view, he is seen as a Johhny-come-lately, a man only invited to the dinner table by the master after the rest of the family has endured an arduous hunting expedition.

“The President has let this problem fester and it could get out of control. Each director feels powerful enough and close to the President, and believes he can get away with anything. Their boss (Mr Esipisu) is sometimes helpless to control them,” said a State House source, who spoke in confidence.  

Last year, Mr Esipisu reportedly abandoned a plan to restructure the communication unit.  

Mr Esipisu did not immediately respond to our requests for a comment.

The Yumbi tweet is one among the many stunning failures by Jubilee administration raising serious questions about competence of those in charge of various dockets.
Last month, Mr Kenyatta had to cancel a trip to the US after a blunder by his protocol officers at State House and the Foreign Affairs ministry.

The latest is another botched trip to Nigeria where Mr Kenyatta was to attend the swearing-in ceremony of president Muhammadu Buhari. He cancelled the trip at the eleventh hour after an list of 84 state officials that were to accompany him was leaked.