Mwandawiro Mghanga Speaks From Hide-out
Mr. Mwandawiro Mghanga, a former Kenyan exile, student leader and current MP for Wundanyi Constituency has said that he has nothing to do with Mungiki and that the current attempt by the government to arrest him is based on his political stand in Parliament and a plan to take him out of the scene ahead of this year’s elections.
Speaking to KSB this morning from his hide-out in Kenya, Mr. Mwandawiro said that his security has been withdrawn in a plot which, he believes, is designed to assassinate him.
“I see the withdrawal of my security as a wider plan to assassinate me. I have nothing to do with Mungiki”, he said.
“The government is deliberately trying to dirtify my name by linking me to Mungiki because of my political stand in Parliament and, strong opposition to corruption and campaigns for my people”, he told KSB. Mwandawiro has been on the frontlines in the campaign against landlessness in Wundanyi where he has organized several demonstrations demanding land re-distribution in Wundayi.
“At the moment, the government is feeling threatened because I have joined forces with Raila Odinga. On Wednesday, we were with Raila at political rallies in Kericho, Bomet, Sotik, and Kisii to campaign. I am being intimidated because of the show of unity with forces seeking to remove Kibaki from power”, he said.
MP Mwandawiro said that those committing acts of murder should be identified, arrested and taken to court to face murder charges.
“The government should not treat Mungiki as an amorphous body because members of Mungiki who are committing crimes can be identified”, he continued.
He said that what the government wants Kenyans to believe is that contacts with Maina Njenga, a rights activist, constitutes membership and support of Mungiki.
“I have, in the past visited Maina Njenga in prison because he works with Civil society. I visited him when his property was invaded sometimes back. The government should know the difference between criminals and law abiding citizens and stop tarnishing my name with Mungiki”, he told KSB.
Mwandawiro said that the government knows who was behind Mingiki and added that the current harassment and intimidation he was experiencing at the hands of the government is evidence that the Kibaki regime had failed and should be defeated at the next General elections.
“The government wants to plant a puppet in Wundanyi and it is also for this reason that my name is being tarnished using Mungiki, a sect which I know nothing about”, he said.
Mwandawiro said that his lawyers, led by Mr. James Orengo, are seeking court orders to prevent his arrest by Kenyan police.
For many Kenyans in Stockholm, Mwandawiro is a perfect example of a former Kenyan exile who returned to Kenya to practice politics and made it to Parliament. Now that he is being harassed by a government that was elected on a platform of change, it is becoming difficult to predict what will happen to former exiles like Mr. Onyango Oloo and Mr. Miguna Miguna who have returned to Kenya to rejoin the struggle for a better Kenya.
Okoth Osewe
Notes on pictures:
(L) A Kenyan is driven away to hospital in an ambulance after being beaten by another Kenyan
(R) A fracas breaks out at a Kenyan Party In Norsborg. The protagonists are being separated. Pictures: Makozewepix.
Opinion: Why Mwandawiro Mghanga Is Being Harassed By Kibaki
In one of the starkest and most naked indication that the government of President Mwai Kibaki is seeking to put a break on the struggle by Kenyans to further open the democratic space in the country, cold blooded killings of innocent Kenyan citizens and other illegal activities by the government-backed Mungiki criminals have been converted into propaganda for political witch hunting, blatant intimidation, unbridled harassment and arbitrary arrest of opposition politicians seeking to bring down the Kibaki regime in December this year.
MPs who have already been arrested and who are currently being held by police are Mr. George Nyanja, Mr. David Manyara and Mr. Adolf Muchiri. Since their arrest four days ago, police have prevented their families from getting in touch with them. William Kabogo, MP for Juja constituency together with Mr. Mwandawiro Mghanga, MP for Wundanyi Constituency are also being sought by police after being fraudulently linked to Mungiki.
According to reports which have been published in the Kenyan press, Mungiki receives contributions from 24 sitting MPs allied to Kibaki including two Cabinet Ministers and three Assistant Ministers. The Ministers are Mr. John Michuki (Minister for Internal Security) and Mr. Njenga Karume (a Minister in the Office of the President). According to reports, friendly politicians contribute a monthly fee of Ksh 5,000, ordinary members Ksh 500 and sympathetic businessmen Ksh 5,000 respectively.
Instead of arresting well-known Mungiki supporters sitting in Kibaki’s Cabinet, the government is intimidating and harassing progressive MPs like Mwandawiro Mghanga who have nothing to do with Mungiki. In fact, MPs who have fallen victim to the government’s strategy of harassment and intimidation either have personal scores to settle with Kibaki’s strong men or are a direct threat to the establishment. The witch-hunting that Kenyans have been exposed to during the last few days are a cover up of a much more sinister government master-plan to use Mungiki as a tool of disruption in the run up to the General elections in December.
The biggest threat in the “Mungiki game” being played by the government is that in its disparity, the regime is trying to physically remove opponents from the political arena as a matter of survival. This must not be allowed to happen because Kibaki was elected on a platform of change, transformation and opening up of the democratic space.
William Kabogo has publicly stated that he is being harassed because John Michuki is seeking to settle personal scores with him. Mwandawiro Mghanga is being harassed because the government is shaking at the fact that Mwandawiro has been organizing massive struggles against landlessness in Wundanyi.
Public rallies and demonstrations which have ended up at the offices of Kibaki’s top representatives in Wundanyi, the radicalization of peasants and the landless Constituents in Wundanyi together with the organized attempts by Mwandawiro to introduce anti capitalist ideology in Kenya’s political discourse are developments which have scared both the Kibaki government and the rich land grabbers in Kenya.
MWANDAWIRO’S HARASSMENT IS LINKED TO POLITICAL ACTIVITIES
What is happening in Wundanyi today could replay itself in any part of the country as long as radical leaders emerge to lead the struggle against landlessness. Mwandawiro is on video record saying that he is part of a Socialist platform contesting seats in the coming elections. Socialists do not have time for murderous sects like Mungiki and in linking Mwandawiro’s name with the sect, the government is trying to taint his name so as to try and curtail the struggle against the rich land grabbers in Wundanyi, a struggle which, if allowed to continue, will spread to other parts of the country and expand in scope to encompass Worker’s struggles, youth struggles, women’s struggles just to mention but a few.
Mwandawiro has been to Cuba on several occasions, the last time having been last year when he attended the birthday of Fidel Castro. Back in Kenya, he has taken contacts with the Cuban Embassy in Nairobi in a bid to try and relate the anti-capitalist struggle of the Kenyan people to the anti-Imperialist struggle of the Cuban people. Together with other Kenyans like Omondi Kabir, Mwandawiro set up the Kenya-Cuba Friendship Society as a way of linking up interested Kenyans to the International struggle for the release of the “Cuban five” who are currently detained in the United States on trumped up charges.
Mwandawiro’s trip to Cuba was a public event which was broadcast by a section of the Kenyan electronic media before and after the trip. The MP’s contacts with the Cuban Embassy in Nairobi have also been very open and even publicized in the Kenyan media. The outgoing Cuban Ambassador to Kenya has, on several occasions, attended public functions in Wundany and made whatever contributions he could to development projects Mwandawiro has initiated in his constituency.
The on-going harassment of Mwandawiro is therefore linked to his political activities and opinion, not on any links with Mungiki. The government believes that it can recycle the old model of political harassment that was constructed by former Dictator Daniel arap Moi and which was based on linking politicians with Mwakenya before arresting them to face torture, detention without trial, imprisonment or even death.
Mwandawiro is one of the Kenyans who paid the price of Moi’s dirty political experiments by being sent to prison and it is outrageous that President Kibaki is now trying to re-invent Moi’s dirty methods to try and exhume the culture of silence and fear that was battered, killed and buried by Kenyans who shed blood and sacrificed their lives just to open the democratic space through which Kibaki became President.
If Mungiki, a rag tag militia group which uses machetes and other crude weapons to decapitate the heads of their victims cannot be defeated by a government which has all the resources imaginable, then Kenyans who are saying that the Kibaki government must go are dead right.
The unnecessary intimidation, harassment and threats of arrest of Mwandawiro Mghanga and others is disturbing and has to be condemned by all Kenyans who lay claim to the struggle for a better Kenya. The use of state resources to divert attention from a failing government on the verge of losing an election must be resisted by all Kenyans regardless of whether or not they agree politically with the victims.
Kenyans and the world are witnessing a situation where a Member of Parliament who is credited for having made the greatest contribution in what is known as the 9th Parliament and who is well known for fighting for the rights of the poor and the landless is currently facing shameless harassment and intimidation by the State. Instead of being rewarded by the government for a work well done, he is being subjected to psychological torture by security forces. This is a shame.
The government’s handling of the so called “Mungiki menace” should be an eye opener that members of the Kibaki ruling class are running the country the way Moi used to – like a private business. If any arrests have to be made on the Mungiki issue, John Michuki and company are the ones who should top the list because they are the real political criminals fuelling the fire for fear of losing power.
Okoth Osewe
Will Ambassador Purity Muhindi Heed Kibaki’s Advise?
Last week, the 14th Conference of Kenyan Ambassadors and High Commissioners took place in Nairobi with President Kibaki warning Kenyan Ambassador and other diplomats that they should take their jobs seriously and market the country aggressively or quit.
“Our Embassies and High Commissions should change the way they work. Don’t spend many years abroad being useless. If you feel you have nothing to do for this country then go and work elsewhere.”, Kibaki told his representatives from 48 Missions across the world.
Back “home in Stockholm”, it was difficult to digest Kibaki’s lecture without thinking about our own Ambassador Purity Muhindi who has had nothing spectacular to show off since she took over from former Ambassador Mukiri Kinyanjui. In fact, the reign of Ambassador Purity has been dogged by a string of controversies which have made the Embassy less interesting to many Kenyans in Scandinavia.
Our Embassy in Stockholm has a very unique approach to the very issues Kibaki was raising. For the Embassy, “marketing Kenya abroad” means grabbing and selling land belonging to the Embassy even if the deal is illegal. No one blames Ambassador Purity for having sold any land but her tomb-like silence when the land scandal broke out makes her an accomplice. The land was only returned after ODM-KS waged a huge public campaign that included the involvement of the Swedish authorities.
There is a common whisper in Stockholm that “never introduce any potential investor to the Embassy” because the first thing that will happen is that you will be thrown out as top Embassy staff take over the deal. One example will suffice.
A hard working Mkenya managed to convince a Swedish hospital that was upgrading its equipment to donate the old equipment to a local dispensary in Kenya instead of throwing them away. The only condition he was given was to organize for transport and to arrange with the government on how the goods could be delivered. Since the equipment was a donation, the Mkenya did not expect the government to tax the cargo especially if the Mkenya could raise funds to transport them.
The deal entered into problems because the guy soon discovered that he had been cut out. A representative of an Embassy official took direct contact with the hospital to negotiate the deal and when the Mkenya discovered what was going on, he cut off strings connected to the deal and it collapsed. This is just a single case.
Kibaki told his Reps to “tap young Kenyan talent currently based in Diaspora” as a way of helping the government realize its “five year roadmap for economic and social development” whose budget has been placed at Sh 500 billion.
It is difficult to understand how the above objective will be met by an Embassy which fires its own citizens from work before hiring Swedish nationals. There is a long standing question at the Embassy that has never been answered. How will the Embassy tap young Kenyan talents in Diaspora when white Swedish nationals have taken up top jobs which could be done by Wakenya in Stockholm? When you visit the Swedish Embassy in Kenya, Kenyans working there are mainly subordinate staff with sensitive jobs being manned by white skinned, blond haired, blue eyed Swedes so why isn’t the situation the same at the Embassy?
In other words, why should a Swede be in charge of translating sensitive government documents from Swedish to English when there are Kenyans capable of doing the job with the advantage of patriotism?
“TOP SECRET” VISITS OF GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS
The most notorious charge against our Ambassador is that she has never made any effort to meet Wakenya. The next six million Dollar question is: If the Ambassador has been unable to reach out to her own people to even update them about the latest government position on investments, how will she reach foreign investors in Sweden when she cannot work with Wakenya who can speak Swedish?
Kibaki said: “I expect all missions to project a positive image and perception of Kenya by giving correct information on the country and its achievements”.
Surely, when is the last time Ambassador Purity Muhindi sent out an information update about Kenya? Instead of doing so, she sent a questionnaire to Wakenya looking for their personal details including their birthdays. Almost every Mkenya never sent back the form because they did not see why sending such information was a matter of urgency.
When government officials come to Sweden for some function, it is always a perfect opportunity for the Embassy to utilize such occasions to expose such officials to Wakenya or the wider Swedish community for updates about what is actually happening on the ground.
Instead, the Embassy has been keeping such visits “top secret” because it does not want Wakenya to “Embarrass” these officials with difficult questions. When a group of Kenyan professionals visited Sweden last year to attend a Conference, they had to meet Wakenya at a private apartment in Älvsjö after a Kenyan bumped into them in town. He overheard them speaking Swahili and asked them where they came from. They told Wakenya that the Embassy did not even care that they were in the country.
Everybody who was following the news at KSB knows about Juliet Kavinga who was murdered by a Swede before the Swede was discharged. When the appeal case came up, the Embassy went missing in Court. If the scene was playing itself in Kenya and Juliet was a Swede, the situation could have been different and the matter could have been in the Swedish media constantly.
Some Swedes who were arrested by the Ethiopian government have been in the news because of diplomatic pressure. If the Embassy cannot even look into the welfare of its own citizens here in Stockholm, what can Wakenya expect regardless of what Kibaki is saying at State House?
Ambassador Purity Muhindi should change her tactics if she doesn’t want to pack and go home before the end of her tour of duty. At least, she has done one positive thing – met Officials of the Kenya Social Forum (Kesofo) and opened the Embassy for what is possible. However, she needs to go further. The Embassy needs to make a follow-up of the Kesofo meeting because the Embassy needs the organization. President Kibaki has already made his position very clear. But will Ambassador Muhindi heed Kibaki’s advise?
Okoth Osewe
ODM-Kenya Parliamentarian To Leave For Kenya
Dr. Adhu Awiti, The MP for Karachuonyo Constituency in South Nyanza in Kenya, will leave for Kenya on Tuesday May 29th after a week in Sweden. Dr. Adhu, who went to Parliament on a Liberal Democratic Party Ticket, is a member of ODM-Kenya. He has been in Sweden on a private visit.
ODM-KS has been in contact with Dr. Adhu who was briefed by the Chairlady Mrs Hellen Opwapo about the latest situation in the Party. Dr. Adhu had wanted to meet ODM-KS members but his schedule was too tight. He promised to be back in August for further updates.
Okoth Osewe
Late Swede’s Family Says Kenyan Girlfriend “Will Not Attend Funeral”
The family of a Swedish national who collapsed and died at a Mombasa Airport, has informed KSB that Grace Wanjohi, a Kenyan national who has claimed that he was the girlfriend of the late Swede, will not be allowed to attend the funeral because the family does not recognize her.
“I wouldn’t give my permission for her to come to Sweden because we want this to be a family matter”, she said on telephone. In a surprise announcement, she also said that the family did not know that the Swede had travelled to Kenya to get married.
“We have gone through all his papers and his communication and there is no evidence that he travelled to Kenyan to get married”, the daughter told KSB.
“No one that we have had contact with here in Sweden has mentioned anything about a wedding or any plans in that direction. That includes friends and his closest family. We have not found any documentation of any plans, whatsoever of my father planning to wed”, she continued.
She said that her father, who was 71, has been ailing for a very long time and travelled to Kenya against Doctor’s advice that he shouldn’t make any trip to Africa. According to Grace, the Swede has postponed the trip to Kenya on several occasions because of health related reasons.
The Swede was suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure, liver problems and heart disease. The daughter told KSB on telephone that her father had a heart operation 15 years ago and that they were surprised that he had lived for a very long time after the operation.
“We knew this was coming and for us, the question was when” the daughter told KSB. When asked why the family did not advice the deceased not to travel because of health related reasons, the daughter said that her father was a man who never acted on the basis of other people’s ideas. “He never accepted anybody’s thoughts in life”, she said.
“He did what he wanted. At least he got to Africa because he could have died in the aircraft. He wanted to travel and we knew we couldn’t stop him”, she told KSB. She said that the family believed that the body of the deceased failed as a result of the long trip he made to Africa and hinted that the funeral will be “very small”.
“It will probably be the three of us”, she said, referring to herself, her brother and their Aunt.
The late Swede was a retired businessman whose specialty was repair of dish washers, laundry machines and refrigerators.
The daughter said that her family was not aware that her father was on her way to Kenya to meet someone.
“When my brother talked to the Mombasa Beach Hotel, to inform them that my father was deceased, they did not mention any reservation other than my father’s”, she told KSB.
She also refuted references to her father as the boyfriend of anybody saying that this reference was “excessive and outrageous”.
“At the reception desk there was an envelope waiting for him and they opened it on my brother’s command. It contained a telephone sim card, no name, no instructions and they did not know who had left it there. We know that our father has had contact with multiple women during the last few years, among them a woman named Grace, but calling him her boyfriend seems excessive and outrageous”, she said in a brief statement.
The position of the family has complicated plans by Grace to travel to Sweden because without an invitation letter from the family, Grace cannot be granted a visa by the Swedish Embassy to be in the country for the funeral.
The daughter told KSB that her father’s body might have been cremated. According to reports from Kenya, the body was supposed to be cremated on Friday May 25th in Kenya after which the ashes were supposed to be airlifted to Sweden for burial. According to Grace, it was the wish of the deceased that his body be cremated.
Okoth Osewe
Some Kenyan Questions & Answers About Sweden
May be, it is time to set up a ”Questions & Answer” page at KSB to address the growing number of questions via email of Kenyans who genuinely want first hand and real information about Sweden because they want to make certain decisions or because they are just curious. Occasionally, I get immigration-related questions from Wakenya at home and abroad who want to study in Sweden, come for a visit or relocate but they lack the information they could compare with official stuff gleaned from embassies or the Internet.
When Juliet Kavinga was killed, some Kenyans (especially back home) were surprised that such brutal murder could have been executed by a white Swede who hails from a country which many people outside Sweden view as a land of humble, kind and obedient people who follow the laws of the State. What made the Juliet murder macabre was the fact that she was seven months pregnant at the time she was killed. The reality that the murderer was the father of the unborn child simply deepened the mystery.
Sweden is like any country and people are killed almost on a daily basis. People are shot to death, mugged and even chopped into pieces before their bodies are stacked in bags then dumped in the bush or elsewhere. On an almost daily basis, girls are raped and the sensational media like Aftonbladet and Expressen are permanently filled with bizarre tales.
Stories of fathers raping their daughters, bosses stealing money from big companies, highway thugs blasting security vans to make away with millions of kronors and other chilling tales are part of daily life. Guns (including Kalashnikovs) are available and shootings are always in the news. Just like the Mungiki are killing and beheading their victims in Kenya, it is not out of the ordinary to find a decapitated body dumped somewhere in a Swedish bush.
There is a case where a young girl conspired with her boyfriend to kill her parents so that they could inherit property. According to a report, the daughter thought that the parents were too old but that Sir death had forgotten them so she conspired with the boyfriend to dispatch the parents to the real underground by hitting their heads with a hammer.
When a very strange news item comes up, it is common to hear Wakenya wondering what is wrong with Wazungu. There are numerous cultural values which are readily accepted by Wazungu but which sound really strange to Wakenya.
For example, a Gambian national divorced his Swedish wife after he refused to take a shower with his six year old daughter as the mother had insisted. The mother showers with the daughter freely but when she insisted over a long period of time that the father does the same so that the daughter could understand the biological difference, the guy quit, arguing that such an action would amount to “bewitching” the daughter. The crisis was worsened by the fact that the guy had refused to go for sun-bathing at the beach in his underwear because he didn’t want to be seen “naked” by strangers. Europeans have a more or less common culture but I am trying to limit myself to Sweden.
I think that there are a lot of myths routinely planted in the minds of Wakenya by Wakenya when they travel home. There are many Kenyans who are well informed about the situation in Europe. But there are others who need urgent help.
“DECOLONIZING THE MIND”
These are the type who believe that you can land in Sweden then in the next few days, you have landed a white Swedish partner to marry to prepare for settlement in Sweden. While this is not impossible, it is rare. Prospective white partners are not like potatoes in the garden waiting to be picked then led straight into marriage to complete the puzzle of “settling in Sweden”. In any case, Wakenya here are not in high demand (like hot cakes) within the romantic market place so the notion that a Mzungu will grab you by the loins at Arlanda International Airport to kiss and caress you all the way to the alter is thoroughly misplaced.
If you write an email to a Mkenya here to “organize ways” for you to “relocate” to Sweden permanently, you will be making a huge demand on the poor Kenyan who neither works at the immigration nor owns a charter plane that ferries Wakenya from Nairobi to Stockholm.
If you are an accountant at a Bank in Kenya, it is pointless offering to “do any job” here to survive during the first days because the process of settling in Sweden includes very many factors which might take years. You might land in Stockholm to discover that getting that job might not be as easy as one plus one. There are Kenyans who have legally settled in Sweden but they have no jobs so what are you saying? The best a Kenyan can do (and this happens from time to time) is to help you obtain a “tourist visa” by guaranteeing your accommodation and up-keep once you are in Sweden. Whatever happens next is an open question.
If you intend to come here for studies, do not pay anybody money in exchange for a tourist visa with the explanation that once you arrive, you will be able to change your visa to a “student’s visa” then join an institution. Very innocent Kenyans have lost as much as half a million Kenyan shillings to travel to Sweden with bogus promises.
Just like in any country (including Kenya), you will need a student’s visa if you have to study in Sweden but this visa has to be obtained from Kenya. Education in Sweden is free ie you won’t be asked for any school fees. But, according to the rules, you will need to show the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi that you can be able to maintain yourself for a minimum of one year before you can be granted a student’s visa. The average cash needed for monthly up-keep for a student (including rent) is 7.000 kr (about Ksh 70.000). This is the bottom line and rules could vary depending on whether you have a relative or someone who can accommodate you so that you slip paying rent.
A Kenyan who is on holiday for a few weeks and is spending lavishly might have planned the trip for some time up to the last coin. Don’t be duped to believe that because nani came to Kenya and he was spending like water, cash grows on trees ulayani. People work, just like in Kenya.
Kenyans resident in Sweden and elsewhere should collaborate on the question of “decolonizing the minds” of our brothers and sisters back home especially about the real situation ulayani. Instead of painting false pictures while on holiday, Wakenya should tell it as it is because many lives have been ruined through wrong information.
Some Kenyans have been stuck in Sweden for more than five years because if they travel home, they will not be able to travel back to Sweden. Other communities are also facing similar problems under similar circumstances. However, this does not mean that something cannot be done to educate our people back home. This kind of education should form part of the liberation process from a psychological point of view.
Okoth Osewe
Tragedy As Swedish Boyfriend Of Kenyan Lady Drops Dead At Mombasa Airport
Tragedy has struck the family of Ms Grace Wanjohi, a Kenyan national, whose Swedish boyfriend collapsed and died upon arrival at an Airport in the coastal city of Mombasa. Mr. Edlund Jan-Erik, the Swede had travelled to Kenya to wed his girlfriend in a colorful ceremony that had taken a long time to plan. Upon arrival at Jomo Kenyatta International airport, Edlund took another flight to Mombasa but unfortunately, he dropped dead as he was filling forms at the reception.
According to communication from the bereaved Grace, she went to the Hotel where her boyfriend was supposed to check in but he did not turn up.
“When I got there, the reception Desk informed me that he had not checked in that morning and I said to them that may be, there is a plane delay and that I would check on him later that evening”, Grace wrote in an email obtained by KSB.
That same evening, Grace gave up waiting and decided to return the following day at 14 hrs Kenya Time. When she was informed that her boyfriend had not been seen, she called his number in Sweden to try and establish whether he had a change of plans and failed to travel but there was no response. She then called his cell phone but once again, there was no answer. She asked the Hotel reception if they had heard from Edlund but the receptionist said she hadn’t.
Before Edlund travelled, he asked his girlfriend to buy him a SIM card which he could use to communicate when in the country. When the Swede failed to show up at the Hotel, Grace left the SIM card with the receptionist and gave instructions that if he arrives, he should use the SIM card to communicate to her. Little did she know that her boyfriend was already dead.
When she went to check her email the following day, she found the shocker. Edlund’s son wrote that his father was dead although he gave no details. Disturbed, Grace sent an SMS to the son asking for more details. The son said that he did not know anything about the circumstances but added that it was his sister who was handling the matter together with the Swedish Embassy in Nairobi. He left a message to the son that in case any further details came up, the son should keep her updated.
Grace then left for Nairobi arriving on Monday this week. She went to the Swedish Embassy for more details about the boyfriend’s death but the Embassy informed her that they too did not have much details. She then decided to return to Mombasa to follow the case. When she was in a Mombasa bound bus, the Swedish Embassy called her and asked her if she could help with identifying the body and she accepted.
The problem now is that Grace would like to attend the burial of her late boyfriend in Sweden but the Swedish Embassy has informed her that she needs a letter from Edlund’s family before they can process a visa. Grace has been to Sweden to visit her boyfriend on several occasions. She was last in Sweden in March last year. She has appealed for assistance from Kenyans in Sweden in any way possible so that she can make it to Sweden to bury her beloved. If there is any way you can help, contact KSB.
Okoth Osewe
Sweden Based Kenyan Player Recalled To National Team
By DENNIS MABUKA
SWEDEN-based professional, Paul Oyuga, has been recalled to national team Harambee Stars that is gearing up for return leg Africa Cup of Nations Group Six qualifying match against Swaziland in Mbabane on June 3.
Oyuga, who last played for Stars in run up to 2004 Nations Cup finals held in Tunisia, replaces Malaysia-based and former Ulinzi striker, Mike Barasa, who is unavailable due to personal commitment.
“Since Barasa will be committed elsewhere, we have been forced to recall Oyuga. I’m very confident that Oyuga will be good cover for Barasa,” Stars coach Jacob “Ghost” Mulee told reporters yesterday.
Barasa played for the last 15 minutes of the first leg encounter between Stars and Swaziland at Nyayo National Stadium on March 25. Stars won the tie 2-0.
Also making a comeback to the side is former Tusker striker Oscar Kadenge. Kadenge is currently turns out for Rwandese side, Rayon Sports, after having a one-year spell at former Uganda league champions Sports Club Villa.
The tactician said Norway based midfield maestro Titus Mulama, may not make the team. “You remember Mulama limped out of the pitch when we played Swaziland and is yet to recover fully. He just returned the other day for his side and thus he will not be fit for the return match,” he said.
Chemelil Sugar’s Mike Mururi has been included in the side as Mulama’s replacement.
Mulee said he expects four professionals to be involved when Stars take on Nigeria’s Super Eagles in a friendly match at Moi International Sports Centre (MISC), Kasarani on Sunday.
The four include skipper Robert “Boban” Mambo (Sweden), Patrick Oboya (Czech Republic), Kadenge (Rwanda) and Jamal Mohammed (Israel).
Mulee said he believes Stars are capable of upsetting the two time Africa and Olympic champions, who are on transit to Kampala, Uganda, where they face Cranes in another return Nations Cup qualifier on June 3. “We are prepared for the big match. I have a team ready to do battle and I can promise an outright win against them,” Mulee said flanked by assistant coaches Twahir Muhiddin and Zedekiah “Zico” Otieno.
He said he will field a blend of upcoming and experienced players adding: “Only 90 minutes will decide the outcome but I know we will come out on top.”
Mulee confirmed that he expects remaining professionals to link up with the team by next Tuesday. “We hope the remaining pros will have joined us in camp by Tuesday because after the Nigeria match…we have four days in Kasarani before departing to Swaziland.”
Meanwhile, defender Charles “Fundi” Oduor is relishing a dream comeback to the team if Mulee picks him to play against Nigeria. Oduor, who turns out for Tusker, was recalled to the team last week after a six year absence.
His last match for Stars was in 2001 against Gabon that the hosts, then under Germany-born coach Reinhardt Fabisch, won 2-1 at Kasarani.
“It feels good to be back in the team. I have been out for six years and to include me in the side after such a long time shows that the coach has faith in me.
I know I will have to work extra hard to win a position in the side since all central defenders are good.”
Meanwhile, Nigeria’s advance party arrived in Nairobi yesterday and immediately proceeded to Grand Regency Hotel where the team has been booked (adds Charles Thuku).
Nigeria Football Association (NFA) deputy secretary in charge of competitions, Mohammed Sanusi who led the visitor’s three-man party, said home-based players alongside deputy coach Agustine Eguaovon were scheduled to jet in yesterday evening followed by the professionals today.
Sanusi added that foreign legion will make a late arrival in the country alongside the team’s German head coach Berti Vogts.
He said after the friendly against Kenya, the team will fly directly to Kampala.
Lifted from Kenya Times 24/05/2007
Humour: “Stockholm Is Complicated”
Ocassionally, you meet a Kenyan in the streets of Stockholm who appears to know you quite well even if you can’t put a name on the face immediately. After the normal “sasa” greetings, you take care not to embarrass yourself by asking “but who are you?”. The smile you received during the contact was just too big and you continue with the conversation as if everything is normal. “Na umelost”, you mutter as you ask yourself silently “but where did I ,meet this bloke?”.
“Poa” the answer comes. By now, you realize that you have totally failed to identify this countryman but you still want to play your cards as though everything is ipso-facto. Then, you decide to try your luck. “But where did we last meet?”, you pose. You are looking for some location so that you can begin to think where you could place your contact in the huge map of Kenyan friends.
“Ahh! Si we met at Norsborg the other day when Wakenya had a Party. Vipi wewe?”, comes the answer. You become careful and you decide to go slowly not to appear as though you still don’t know this chap. Then you pretend. “Ahhh! Now I remember”. You pray that the Mwananchi doesn’t ask you “what is my name?” because the truth is that you have no answer.
“That’s raaiitt”, you squeak back as if you have hit the jack-pot. By now, your brain is working overtime, trying to resolve the question as to “who is this Mkenya?”. Instead of just being honest and saying that “Well, I have forgotten who you are”, you move on. “So, how is life?”. You have now started a conversation with someone who is still a stranger. Why are some Wakenya just too shy?
“Well, life is fine. Tunaskuma tu kama kawaida”, comes the answer. Then, you don’t know what to say next because you are still hiding the fact that this chap is actually a stranger to you. Suddenly, you try to test if this stranger of a Kenyan is connected to anybody you could relate to and who could help with identification.
“So what’s up. I have been out of touch for quite sometime”, you dare. You were at the Alby Party last week-end and you are saying that you have been out of touch. In fact, you were even “out of order” at the Party because you started swallowing too early.
“Ahh! We wacha. You can’t be out of touch. I saw you at the Party last week-end”. You realize that you are almost being caught. “Ohhh, yes yes yes. You were there”, you puke although you still question yourself “who the hell is this?”
The truth is that this Mwananchi had just come from Kenya and had just been introduced to you by another Kenyan friend. You took his number and promised to call back because you were supposed to link him up with some contact who could fix a job. The reason why you cannot remember your countryman is that you simply wanted to appear important and connected so you made an empty promise and since the chap does not matter in your life, you forgot about him.
“You were to call me about the job connection. What happened?”, he asks. “Yaa… That’s correct”. You have been making a lot of such empty promises and you need a really good explanation to survive.
“You know, my mobile got lost together with your number. I have just fixed a new phone although I have my old number because I registered it”, you lie then study the reaction to see if the thing has been swallowed. “Pole sana”. You are relieved because at least it has worked.
“Let me get your number again so that we can keep in touch”, you propose a solution then proceed to re-enter the number in your mobile. The truth is that you will never call this Mwananchi because if he thinks that you can fix a job, then he still has a long way to go in Stocky. You know too well that even the labour office is having difficulties in fixing jobs and so you are the last option. Any Mkenya who asks you for a job is immediately classified as “being out of touch with reality”. Your consolation is that Stockholm is complicated and that “everybody is for himself or herself”.
Okoth Osewe
Invitation To Children’s Baptism By Ole Ngais And Family
Jeff Ole Ngais and Family invites Wakenya to the baptism ceremony of their children Jolen and Dylan which will take place on Saturday 26th May 2007 at Bagarmossen Church from 13.00 hrs. The service will be “cross cultural” and the ceremony will last for 30 minutes.
There will be a reception thereafter where cakes and coffee will be served. The reception will take place at the Outreach Ministry’s Hall (lokal). All are welcome.
KSB takes this opportunity to congratulate Ole Ngais and Family on the occasion of the baptism of their children. All we can say is “good luck”.
Okoth Osewe
Sound Of Blackness Is Back!
Sound Of Blackness has organised a series of events this summer starting with the upcoming Summer Jam to be held on the 9th of June at Musikhuset in Norsborg. The group would like to officially thank you all for the overwhelming support you have given them, and promise to continue their efforts to make future events even better.
However, troublemakers will not be tolerated at the Parties and thus security will be tight like a fist. Those who want to have a good time without the “drama” are most welcome. For more info, visit www.soundofblackness.se Come one, come all and let’s make it a summer to remember!
DJ EZ Frank
Reflections On ODM-KS’s Annual General Meeting
If there is one observation which became evident on Saturday at the ODM-KS Annual General Meeting, it is that there are Kenyans in Scandinavia who are genuinely interested in doing whatever they can to try and bring positive political changes in Kenya. One would have expected that after the much publicized crisis in ODM-KS characterized by mud-slinging, character assassination, calumny, slander and vituperation that was orchestrated by the opposition, Kenyans and friends who were genuinely interested in ODM-KS would simply retreat into their private lives and leave the matter alone. What happened was the direct opposite.
There was a tripling of the number of members who paid up their dues ahead of the AGM. Before the crisis, the Party had 43 members out of which 23 had kept their membership up to date. By the time of the AGM, the number had reached 68 with over 20 members joining the Party after the crisis. At the inaugural meeting where ODM-KS was formed, about 20 supporters attended out of which 15 paid their membership fees on the spot.
At the AGM, 35 attended while 6 sent their votes. In fact, the crisis has helped in building ODM-KS rather than destroying the Party and the question now is how the new Party leadership can consolidate using the good membership base to further the agenda of the Party. Since it was set up, ODM-KS has never pulled the kind of crowd that turned up at the AGM. It was a mixture of elderly Kenyans and friends, middle aged and the youth. What really contributed to the huge urgency for supporters to make their position known within the Party at a time of crisis?
According to members who were interviewed by KSB, the crisis was largely being seen as “artificial”. Problems began after the nomination of Hon Raila Odinga as the Party’s preferred candidate. Many members believe that this should not have been a problem because the general view within the membership is that Raila is the person who is fit to take on President Kibaki. In other words, many members came, not just to elect a new Office but also to defend the Raila nomination. The outgoing Committee brought up the matter very clearly in the Annual General Report but when the issue was exposed for discussion, there was no opposition.
Supporting Raila Odinga from Scandinavia as the preferred candidate to take up Kibaki is something very little for Wakenya and friends who might not even be in Kenya in December to vote. However, ODM-KS members who openly engaged in discussions especially after the AGM were of the view that the Party needed to send signals in Kenya that Raila is not just popular in Kenya but also among Party members in Scandinavia. ODM-KS leadership had stated that if another candidate is nominated by Party members in Kenya, ODM-KS will throw its weight behind that candidate. This was a point that was repeated several times by some members who believe that this is how democracy works.
The opposition made a big mistake by creating a crisis then going ahead to violate the very Constitutional pillars upon which ODM-KS is built. The crisis burst into the public lime light when Mr. Dancan Munala, former Secretary, went out with a unilateral statement contradicting the Party position on the Raila nomination. For members who expressed their sentiments, this was wrong because the move set a dangerous precedent for the Party. The view was that there would be total chaos in the Party if every Committee member begins to go out with a statement whenever there is a disagreement within the Committee.
ODM-KS LEADERSHIP SHOULD NOW BUILD THE PARTY
Another issue is that when the Committee called a Committee meeting to discuss the issue, the opposition comprising of three Committee members called an “Emergency members meeting” with a notice of two days. This move eroded the credibility of the opposition in the eyes of the membership which began to read “mischief” in the whole project. In calling the member’s meeting, the opposition boycotted a Committee meeting that was called to discuss the crisis. This was a move some members could not understand because if the Committee had refused to call a Committee meeting to discuss the crisis, the Constitution is very clear – the opposition should have sought the support of 20% of members to force the Committee to call an “Extra-ordinary members meeting” to discuss the issue, giving members good time to attend the meeting. Some members felt like they were being treated like “kindergarten children” by the opposition which, they claimed, “assumed the intelligence of the membership”.
The dirty vilifications of Committee members in the Internet by the opposition simply acted to poison the minds of the membership and some new members who have been interested in the Party joined officially because they believed that if they do not do so, individuals who were exposing themselves as opportunists could break the Party and curtail campaigns to get President Mwai Kibaki out of the way.
Another issue was the question of “reliability” on the three Committee members who had created the crisis. For many members, the political record of Committee members who were defending the Party has been tested over time while Committee members who constituted the opposition were all making their debut in politics through the Party. The dominant view was that the opposition lacked the kind of experience that was needed to deal with the situation and under the circumstances, some members thought that the opposition opened a war without realizing their “underdog status”.
There are many situations where “underdogs” have performed better than the “veterans”. In this case, the opposition missed one major point. That you need to know the level of support you have within the membership of a Party before you push a controversial agenda. Even if you have unquestionable support, you still need to follow the rules of the game otherwise you will be opening yourself to charges of “undemocratic behavior”.
When the opposition failed to mobilize even a single member at their “Emergency meeting”, they should have changed strategy by toning down on rhetoric while at the same time getting to the grass roots to measure the political pulse of the membership. This did not happen. As the opposition made noise in the Internet, the leadership was busy mobilizing at the grass roots.
ODM-KS leadership should now move on with the task of building the Party. The leadership has the support of the membership. Fundamental lessons have been learnt during the crisis but this is normal with politics where there are always new opportunities popping up for political education.
ODM-KS members should feel proud that through their support, the crisis has helped in building the Party at a critical time when Kenyans in Scandinavia should be organizing politically in order to be able to add their voices to the political process in the country.
Okoth Osewe
Smooth-Running ODM-KS Elections At Wananchi Pavilion
The long awaited Annual General Meeting of ODM-KS is over and an elected Committee has taken over the running of the Party. It was the biggest ODM-KS gathering in Stockholm since the Party was set up in October last year. Even the Interim officials who called the meeting were surprised at the large turn-out of members whom, interestingly, have been following events within the Party in the Internet.
Between 14.00-15.00, members were mainly arriving at Wananchi Pavilion, checking their membership status, exchanging banter with other members and going through written material that had been prepared for the meeting. These included the Annual General Report and Agenda for the meeting. Copies of ODM-KS Constitution together with Ballot papers were also available. Two members who had not sorted out their membership fees and who could not do so at the meeting were informed that they would not be able to vote.
The agenda of the meeting was followed to the letter. After different proposals, Mr. Paul Njenga was settled upon by members to Chair the meeting while Mr. Makan Macharia and Mr. Antony Odera were given the responsibility of “minute verifiers also responsible for vote counting”. Mr. Njenga did a fantastic job, sticking to the Agenda and ensuring that contributors limited themselves to items which were relevant.
Mr. Njenga took time to elongate on aspects of the Agenda from time to time whenever members needed serious guidance. When a member appeared to have been in a state of circumlocution, he intervened immediately to keep the meeting on track.
As the Agenda moved on, the Annual General Report was presented by the Secretary. The presentation of the Report took almost half an hour. Members who had questions on the Report were welcomed to raise them. Interestingly, members were so informed about the crisis that had been masterminded by three Committee members that the major issue at the meeting appeared to have been a solution rather than a microscopic observation of the crisis.
The Annual General Report covered a variety of topics namely: The setting up of ODM-KS in October last year, the writing of the Party’s Constitution, the mandate that was given to the Committee, the gathering of Committee members, resignations within the Committee, ODM-KS Office in Stockholm, ODM-KS website, Grabbed land at the Ambassador’s residence and its recovery by ODM-KS, the case of Mr. Paul Njenga who was sacked as Gardener at the residence of the Kenyan Ambassador, ODM-KS Finances, the Korogocho Project that was started by ODM-KS members and its current status, contacts between ODM-KS and ODM-Kenya, the position of ODM-KS in relation to ODM-Kenya, problems in the Committee, Constitutional violations by three Committee members, re-distribution of responsibilities within the Committee and circumstances that surrounded this action. The Committee also made specific recommendations to members. The report was then discussed in detail before it was adopted.
On the question of Finance, the Committee delivered a Report based on the time when the new Treasurer took over Office until the 19th of May 2007. This was because the former Treasurer Ms Sofia Njoroge had failed to attend Committee meetings that were called to plan the AGM. At the time of writing the ODM-KS Report, the Party had a total of 3.800 kr under the custody of the new Treasury. This is cash that was mainly raised through registration of new members since May 4th. The amount shot to 4.600 kr when some members updated their membership just before the meeting. Among these members were Mrs Hulda Palm and Mrs Monica Otieno.
The meeting resolved that the outgoing Treasury would not be relieved from responsibility until the former Treasurer delivered a comprehensive Financial Report to the newly elected Committee. The Committee was instructed to call a member’s meeting and report on progress regarding the financial accountability by the former Treasurer.
The Committee was given the mandate by members to take “any action possible” to ensure that money that was raised by members during the formative stages of ODM-KS was properly accounted for before the issue of ODM-KS finances during the tenure of the Interim committee could be closed. The Committee was relieved from responsibilities on other matters and this paved the way for elections.
A curious point is that there was no opposition by members about the nomination of Hon Raila Odinga by ODM-KS as the candidate who would face President Kibaki in the coming December elections. This was a major issue that was used by three renegade Committee members to try and manufacture a crisis within the Party.
ODMK-KS ANNUAL MEMBERSHIP FEES INCREASED
Out of registered paid up membership of 68, a total of 35 turned up to cast their votes while 6 voted by proxy bringing the total number of votes cast to 41. Voting by proxy is allowed within the Party as long as those voting by proxy do not exceed those present at the AGM. According to the rules, those voting by proxy have to inform the leadership in advance so that they can be sent ballot papers together with the list of members vying for seats.
The Constitution states that for decisions at the AGM to be valid, 51% of members have to be physically present to constitute a quorum, a requirement that was met at the meeting. With a registered paid up membership of 68, ODM-KS is now the biggest Kenyan political Party in Scandinavia. Within Scandinavia, members from Finland and Denmark were represented. Members agreed that work to set up the Party branch in Norway would be intensified.
As per the Constitution, voting was by secret ballot. The result of the polls was announced by Mr. Antony Odera who took almost an hour to count the votes together with Mr. Makan Macharia. During vote counting, members relaxed with soft drinks and took the opportunity to chat with one another.
The following members were elected to sit in ODM-KS Committee: Mr. Martin Ngatia, 40 votes, Mrs Hellen Opwapo, 39 votes, Mr. Okoth Osewe, 39 votes, Mrs Grace Nyambura, 39 votes, Mr. Charles Otieno Owiyo, 36 votes, Ms Caroline Ayodo, 35 votes, Mr. Waweru Nderi, 35 votes and Mrs. Nancy Osumba 21 votes.
After the announcement of the poll results, a thunderous applause filled Wananchi Pavilion as members congratulated the new Committee. As per the Constitution, the Committee was given the task of distributing responsibilities among itself as soon as possible and to begin work within the Party ahead of elections in Kenya next year.
A major decision that was taken at the meeting was that the Annual membership fees was increased by members from 100 kr to 200 kr with a 50 kr monthly membership fees. Mr. Mike Osumba, a Kenyan elder, led debate on the fee issue. He told members that if Party members were serious enough, the annual membership fees of 100 kr “was too little”.
He said that the Party was running an Office without funds from anywhere and warned members that the Party was likely to be affected if ways of fund raising could not be improved. Members agreed and after further discussions, adjustments were made on the membership fees. Mr. Osumba, who received huge support from members, said that ODM-KS should be ready to venture into business to raise cash, arguing that this was legal in Sweden as long as the Party was paying taxes.
The meeting agreed that in future, members would be updated about Party activities via snail mail as well as other channels. The main observation was that not every member could follow events online. Members who had not left their physical addresses did so to enable the Committee to get in touch with them during times of need. Others left emails so that the Party could build a mailing list through which members could communicate. The atmosphere at the Pavilion was that of brotherhood and sisterhood with many members expressing sentiments based on building the Party ahead of elections in Kenya as opposed to personal antagonism that had been witnessed at the Party ahead of the AGM.
After the meeting, members were treated to food and entertainment, a section of the Agenda which stretched well into the night.
As celebrations continued, Mr. Daniel Mwaura, Chairperson of Narc-KS, arrived with an entourage of Narc-KS members to wish ODM-KS well following their inaugural elections. He congratulated the new ODM-KS Committee and hoped that the wishes of ODM-KS members would be respected by all concerned.
Mr. Mwaura was well received at the function and his presence was seen by members as a sign that Narc-KS was serious in living “side by side” with ODM-KS in the interest of a wider unity among Kenyans in Stockholm despite political differences. It was a clear signal that Kenyan political parties in Scandinavia are getting mature as opposed to the situation in Kenya where ODM-Kenya and Narc-Kenya do not see eye to eye.
The Party ended well but as the guests were moving out into the streets after the Pavilion was closed, disaster struck. Two Wakenya entered into a scuffle and a fight broke out. One Mkenya ended up in hospital while the attacker, who had gate-crushed at the ODM-KS reception, is currently being hunted by police.
Okoth Osewe
Picture caption: Tonny Odera announces ODM-KS election results carrying a bundle of ballot papers.
Video Update: Sir David Frost Interviews Raila Odinga
The nomination of Raila Odinga as preferred Presidential candidate for ODM-K is a key issue that was used by renegades within ODM-KS to try and create “a crisis” within the Party. In this clip, David Frost Interviews Raila Odinga but not on his nomination by ODM-KS. To find out what he said, CLICK HERE
Okoth Osewe.
Political Opportunists And How To Fight Them
In every political Movement or Party, the presence of one or more opportunists lurking around to take advantage for personal gain is always alive. Opportunists join Movements or Parties for different reasons. In certain cases, an opportunist might join a Party with very good intentions but as the Party begins to make strides and the opportunist begins to notice political advantages which could be exploited to advance flexible or fixed personal agendas, the opportunist begins to adjust his or her strategy to fit into the prevailing system. It is much easier to deal with an established opportunist whose methods are well known than one who uses camouflage to further hidden political agendas.
A camouflaged opportunist is more dangerous because he/she could penetrate into the leadership of a Party before exposing his/ her opportunism and by then, it might be too late. It is easier to handle an opportunist who doesn’t follow the rules than one who is well aware of the rules and uses them to his or her advantage. In a political Party, an opportunist who follows the rules could gather a lot of support from the membership and even constitute “alternative leadership” by influencing the membership through political sophistry. On the other hand, an opportunist who breaks the rules to try and archive his/her objectives quickly loses the confidence of the membership whose support is key to winning any war against political opportunism.
Opportunists operate at different levels of sophistication. There is the opportunist who could disagree with bits of a Party program then use these disagreements to attract attention within the Party in order to discredit the leadership or disrupt the Party. Then, there is the opportunist who could use a Party Constitution to remind both the membership and the leadership that they are on the wrong terrain and that the Party needs to change cause. In this case, the opportunist might try to assume the role of a “Prophet” in the Party or Movement.
Better still, there is the attention-seeking opportunist who exploits Party policy or decisions by the Party leadership to try and emerge as the “voice of reason” within the Party leadership. Still, there is the opportunist who seeks to build a personal profile by pretending to raise “contentious issues” in a Party using issues that have no bearing on the major objectives of the Party and which could easily be resolved through internal discussions. These are just a few examples of the general demeanor of a political opportunist.
In any political Party, there is no time when there will be a shortage of “points of disagreements” on Party program, Party Constitution, policy, strategy, tactics or methods of struggle. Anybody who wants to disrupt the leadership, create confusion among the membership, foster may hem or even quit the Party could take advantage of any perceived “weak point” within the Party to launch an assault which could be devastating depending on how the Party leadership handles the situation.
In fighting an opportunist, it is important that the general “morphology of opportunism” at play be clearly mapped out and properly understood. Once this has been done, the next step is to evaluate the level of influence or support that the opportunist(s) command within the Party or Movement. At this stage, it could also be crucial that the leadership (or think tank) isolate the fundamental polemics the opportunist wing is employing to gain political mileage in the situation.
You can be sure that you can never defeat an opportunist through a blanket condemnation or an organized process of demonization because there are certain instances when the opportunists could be right. An opportunist could utilize legitimate gaps within the Party to gain advantage. Take note!
NEVER SUSPEND OR EXPEL AN OPPORTUNIST FROM THE PARTY
Opportunists know how to create conflicts and how to make the leadership to “sweat”. Any conflict created by an opportunist needs to be dissected to facilitate a proper and thorough response at the political level. If an opportunist raises political issues, do not respond by avoiding the issues. The Party leadership has to be ready for “The battle of the minds” within the membership and this is never won through mud-slinging, character assassination and witch hunting.
If the opportunist is violating the Constitution in the process of the “propaganda war”, point this out clearly. Bring to surface the Constitutional violations and explain every aspect of the violation so as to expose the dirty methods of the opportunist.
Secondly, get into an analysis of the issues the opportunist is raising and here, try to out-reason the opportunist through well-thought out political arguments that will have an impact on the consciousness of the membership.
An inexperienced opportunist might get so emotional that he or she might begin to attack the Party leadership “below the belt”. Do not respond in a similar fashion because in doing so, the membership will not notice the difference between the opportunists and the leadership. Try to stick to the main political issues, the evidence and the dirty agenda of the opportunists. You could warn the opportunist that you have a list of dirt about their character but be cautious in using this weapon.
As the war of words continues between the leadership and the opportunists, try to focus on the membership as a possible solution to the crisis. If the Party has an intelligent membership, this membership will be able to separate the sheep from the goats during the conflict. Do not underrate the intelligence of the membership by opting for undemocratic ways of struggle against the opportunists.
If the leadership can sort out the issue through a member’s meeting, call such a meeting. If the war is such that there are elements of a power struggle (and this is the last option), call an election of a new Office. This tactic is routinely used by governments in times of crisis through “snap elections” or other related devices. This option works best if more than one opportunist in the leadership is part of the problem or if a faction has built up to oppose the leadership using opportunistic criticism.
Any leadership which is democratic and believes that it has the support of the membership should not fear challenging the opportunists to an election duel especially if the root of the conflict is based on internal power struggle. At such a meeting, key issues being raised by the opportunists could be put before the membership for a decision.
A honest leadership should be ready to stand aside if it is defeated in a democratic election. Very few opportunists will accept to participate in an election in which they are sure to lose because of the element of shame. Use this weapon.
There are opportunists who are well aware that they can never win a war they have started because of circumstances. In such situations, the opportunists will try to disrupt the Party from within with a “Plan B” of setting up their own out-fit as a splinter group or joining another political bandwagon. This type of opportunists are easy to deal with because they are normally faced out with an election.
One warning. Never try to suspend or expel an opportunist from the Party because then, you will be creating a hero out of nothing. Let the opportunist quit the Party voluntarily or if this cannot happen, a democratic Constitution should provide for a way out when it comes to wayward members. Let members decide on the fate of an opportunist trying to disrupt a Party.
Among Wakenya, every serious political Party needs to understand the politics of opportunism and how to fight opportunists. The crisis of political parties in our country today is a direct consequence of political opportunism. The risk of political opportunism is even more greater in situations where a Party has no political ideology to work with. This is the case with ODM-KS.
Okoth Osewe
Recent Comments
Mungiki murderer in… on 11 Kenyan Women Caught Having… Ujantas Jantas on Fresh and Shocking Video of Wi… Mpigs on Jubilee Government Police Brut… Konny Kimenththo on Interracial Relationships: A B… Mpigs on Jubilee Government Police Brut… NEW: COUNTRY STATS
