Of Skipping & Unburid Hatchets.

To say that Charity Ngilu is a master at the school yard game of Jump Rope is an understatement. She seems to do it with both mastery and lightening quick reflexes and alacrity not to mention timing and precision. Due to this skill she has earned herself the rather dubious honour and reputation as wish washy and her inability to stick to make a decision and stick to it no matter the following consequences is – with each move across the chequered political chess board- becoming more apparent. In a move two days ago that some called greed fuelled and others preservation ‘Mama Rainbow’ skipped once more across the political divide – having only recently deciding to go with the Oranges of the newly minted CORD alliance- spurned the PM and VP Kalonzo Msyoka and turned instead to the equally new Jubilee alliance which comprises of TNA, URP and UDF because as she put it she was ‘betrayed in the pre-election agreement.’

 This change of heart should not however have come as any shock to Mrs. Ngilu’s fellow politicians or Kenyans as history has once again repeated itself. Since 2002 the Water and Irrigation Minister has skipped the invisible rope more than 4 times. Firstly supporting president Kibaki in his succession of the president Moi in the Rainbow Coalition (NARC), the she skipped on to the opposition when she chose to go with ODM when she backed the PM Raila Odinga when he vied for the 2007 election. She then decided to Part Company with the PM and throw her own hat into an increasingly crowded ring for the 2013 presidential election on a Narc ticket. In the mean time and as the window began to close on political alliances she wandered over to TNA to see if the dove party was the place for her, after deciding it was not, she returned to allies in the Orange party and all seemed well for a few days...

The only problem with this once comfortable home for the Kitui Central Member of Parliament was that he bitter rival and home turf competitor Kalonzo Msyoka who had recently been added to the alliance and this was a hatchet that ‘Mama Rainbow’ just couldn’t burry. Which begs the question that many Kenyans undoubtedly asked themselves: Why did she go there when Kalonzo had already formed an alliance with the PM, his party and 11 others?  She says that she did so because of her old friend the PM but that Kalonzo pushed her out.

 

... So much for burying the hatchet in favour of a united front.

She went on to say that: ‘I will take on Uhuru and Mdavadi for the joint presidential nomination and not the running mate slot as what Kalonzo has opted for.’ This however may not be possible if she wants to hold on to her Narc party as her new party says that she will only be part of the alliance, and that she will not be allowed to participate in the party nomination exercise as she has not ‘come to the table’ as an alliance signatory. There is a glimmer of hope though, offered to the alliances newest member by way of TNA but this option comes with a condition: that she forms an alliance with Uhuru Kenyatta’s TNA  and forsake her Narc party leadership.

Monday is D-day for the Jubilee Alliance as the will all troop to Kasarani to choose their flag bearers. Charity Ngilu will also be present to sign an agreement with the party and not to take part- well their goes her rays of hope and the above strongly worded statement.

That choice will now happen on Tuesday.

Loyalty has always been a non entity in politics; it's no longer about being loyal but about being cunning and making a choice that will turn out best for the chooser. The politician must weigh their options carefully and opt - in this case- for the best deal. This time of reflection will undoubtedly lead to a game of jump rope from one side to the other in the hope that they have landed themselves in a better position than they were in before.

While all this skipping is going on some chose to stand their ground, to strike out on their own and walk down the road less travelled this could be viewed in two ways either they- like Martha Karua- are strong willed, stubborn and refuse to be swayed by any deals or- much like in a playground of children- they had to settle for loneliness as none of the others picked them to join their teams.

Whatever the case the Narc-K presidential struck a blow at her colleagues who are busy linking themselves in alliances while drumming up support for her bid for state house in voi.

There are still others who join their own (smaller) alliances, stand back and watch the shuffle before joining one of the bigger teams; this is the method chosen by The Pambazuka Alliance of Presidential aspirant Eugene Wamalwa and Lugari MP Cyrus Jirongo. Who said they too would throw their weight behind the Jubilee alliance but only if Musalia Mdavadi won the party nomination as flag bearer.

 
It would be correct then to think- from his statements- that he's willing to forsake his own ambition for the good of Mudavadi and Jubilee. What happened to making a choice and sticking to it? Or is it that he now doubts his ability to stand and win against the other two 'horses'- Odinga and either Uhuru or Mudavadi?