Banished from power, Kiunjuri must depend on more than proverbs

Festus Mwangi Kiunjuri’s parting shot following his sacking from the Cabinet last week was ominous: “Remember for any action there is a reaction. You keep it cool, I keep it cool.”

That points to a man who is prepared to take the bull by the horns. But whether the bull will stay away from taking on the former Agriculture Cabinet secretary is a matter we can only wait and see.

Mr Kiunjuri has honed his political muscle by stretching the limits of his political capacity and attempting to box above his weight.

As a young man, he ran and to the surprise of many won the Laikipia East seat in 1997.

The then DP leader Mwai Kibaki was so impressed, according to Kiunjuri, that he offered to pay part of his university fees.

But it was in 2011 - alongside former Nyeri Governor Nderitu Gachagua - that he attempted to test then-President Mwai Kibaki.

Kiunjuri had formed a party strangely called GNU in which he fielded a candidate in a nondescript ward by-election in Nyeri.

ICC GAFFE

The only small issue was the ward was in the sitting President’s constituency.

President Kibaki drove all the way to Othaya and led the campaign against Kiunjuri, his former protégé, and dismissed “outsiders” who were setting camp there.

It was clear he was boxing above his weight but nonetheless sent a message that he was prepared for bigger political fights.

When International Criminal Court (ICC) indicted Deputy Prime Minister Uhuru Kenyatta and five others in 2010, Mr Kiunjuri was on hand to galvanise political support for Mr Kenyatta.

He deployed proverbs and metaphors on behalf of Mr Kenyatta to great effect. They used to travel in the same helicopter as they traversed Mt Kenya region. Life was good.

But just before 2013 elections the two fell out after Mr Kiunjuri gave an interview to one of the Kikuyu stations to the effect that in case Mr Kenyatta was to be jailed, Kiunjuri was on the wings to take over the Mt Kenya mantle.

It was akin to burying a person alive. Obviously, the reaction was swift and he was banished to political dustbin in 2013 elections. GNU died too.

POLITICAL MUSCLE

In 2015, he was rehabilitated by being appointed a minister and then reappointed after 2017 elections.

Clearly, his political ambition had not died and he started to openly position himself as successor to President Kenyatta in Mt Kenya region.

Whether or not Mr Kenyatta is leaving the political scene after 2022 elections is something that we will wait and see. But something is clear - Kiunjuri is not finished politically.

He is not a pauper, neither can he be said to be a billionaire like some businessmen from Murang’a, where he is rumoured to have been born before his family relocated to Laikipia.

That Mr Kiunjuri has a huge advantage when it comes to expressing himself in Kikuyu language has never been in doubt.

What is in doubt is whether he has the political muscle to take on Mr Kenyatta who is not a pushover either.

ELECTIVE POST

Kiunjuri will have a lot of free time to strategise and prepare for his next political moves.

Proverbs, metaphors and figurative speech will not be enough. Much more will be needed to catapult him to an elective national seat, which he openly covets.

The trained teacher will have to study the lessons he has taken in his political journey and plan his time table in a way that will ensure he gets the desired results.