"The issue of corruption also has impeded development in Africa. There is corruption everywhere, but the difference is what the government does especially when it is discovered."
Raila Odinga during an interview with Africa Today's Publisher and Editor-in-Chief Kayode Soyinka http://www.raila2007.com/cms2/index.php?id=107&tx_ttnews%5Bpointer%5D=1&tx_ttnews%5Btt_news%5D=107&tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=9&cHash=bbe6979f5f
"I came to Moi’s aid when the Government wanted to take away his houses and sue him over Goldenberg during my days as the Minister for Roads."
Raila Odinga speaking in Kisumu.
Standard Online, Sunday, November 26, 2006
http://www.eastandard.net/archives/cl/hm_news/news.php?articleid=1143961640
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3 comments:
ai gathara! at this rate who will be left standing? i honestly thought even if you did not support Raila, you would remain your true self and cut out the insults! i thought you would hit at the policies fronted by the man but not assault his person.
Odegle,
Nothing personal, as a quick perusal of the rest of the titles (I assume that is what you are opposed to) on this blog will show. It was at worst a weak attempt at a pun on the man's family name.
However, if you consider juxtaposing Raila's contardictory statements as an insult, then God help you....
The ODM avalanche seems to have hit its anti climax after the goodwill that it enjoyed immediately after Ruto and Magara were regrettably manhandled in Kisii. This goodwill was later transferred to the Rift Valley during that massive rally before culminating into a crescendo at Uhuru park where Kenya witnessed a wave of humanity like no other.
Right now, the crest of the ODM wave seems to have reached a plateau and this couldn't have been made worse than by a gaffe from their leader regarding majimbo.
To begin with, majimbo is a subject that needs sober, detailed analysis and in my view, a referendum. Most people are opposed to it according to Steadman polls irrespective of their political leanings and this strikes a delicate chord of uncertainty for the so called pentagon.
Raila Odinga, an engineer by profession and an intelligent man I might add, is trying to confuse the masses by conflating two words or terms; Majimbo (federalism) and devolution.
Kalonzo, apparently the wiser of the two as far as this issue goes is being cautious and only advocates for economic majimbo whatever that means but it is Raila's attempt at pitting 41 against 1 or if you like, 38 against 3 (GEMA) that has led to his current stagnation.
Politicians thrive on the masses' ignorance or apathy. Raila's disciples, and this is a fact, don't have a lot of regard for facts and data. They don't seek the finer details. They care less about how certain programmes will be attained or funded. When Raila says that 60% (forgive me if I got the figure wrong) of the nation's revenue will go to CDF under majimbo instead of the current 2.5%, they don't ask what programmes will be traded off if we have to achieve this. WHere will we get other monies for other programmes? Is 40% of our revenue enough for education,, defence, salaries and all other recurrent as well as development expenditure?
If we (our MPs that is) don't even utilise the kshs. 30 million annual share of CDF per constituency which is always repartriated back to the treasury, how about 1 BILLION? (60% OF 400 BILLION IS 240 BILLION.) Each constituency under Raila would therefore get 1 Billion kshs. in terms of CDF. Correct me if I am wrong.
Raila shoots from the hip and that is his strength as well as his undoing. After arguing that the NSE was being fueled by drugs money, and after Minister Kimunya told him (regardless of whether this was true or not) that his callous, careless and uninformed utterances had led to the loss of Billions at the bourse, he rushed to the mart to try and plug the holes but that was too little too late. The Kenyan investor is with Kibaki lock, stock and barrel.
ODM, like someone so aptly put it in her vernacular here in Mashada is like a bonfire made out of chaff or husks. It glows abruptly and the sparks fly all over before dying out fast. We'll probably be seeing the embers of that fire in the next month. I DON'T SEE THE ODM WAVE COMING ANYWHERE CLOSE TO WHERE IT WAS 3 WEEKS AGO.
In the meantime, Kibaki's steady hand is guiding PNU. He's been criss crossing the RIft Valley with great success and kama ninavyosema mara kwa mara, Kibaki doesn't need to get a majority of the votes in the areas where ODM is excelling. Not that he doesn't need every vote, but mathematically, he needs to pilfer a sizeable chunk of votes from ODM and ODM-K to add to his votes and emerge with a majority of the popular vote. That is why the president is so confident and from his campaigns, he is on course.
Raila is someone who is prone to goofing. A few days ago, he went to of all places Othaya to urge the peasants there not to re-elect Kibaki. What fallacy! That was a waste of time and if he doesn't know it, he needs better advisers. His Meru trip, regrettably as things turned out, would be a better bet but even then, it was made more out of proving a point rather than value ( to be derived from such a visit).
The government also had its wits around it by ensuring that he (Raila) was able to spread his porojo by the government warding off hecklers failure to which he'd have tried to capitalise on the fact that PNU had prevented him from campaigning in Kibaki's stronghold. This would have been followed by a press conference from his party and the diplomats accredited to the country and doesn't Raila love this!
It didn't pan out as Raila would have loved and no wonder we didn't see him after Meru. He's still strategising on the best way to remain in the headlines.
As the majimbo debate rages, ODM has embarked on trashing the Cardinal. The pentagon fell short of saying that the Catholic church was supportin g Kibaki and PNU but they went as far as saying that their statement would be construed to mean that they were partisan.
Today, the PCEA and the Anglican churches have added their voices but at least they haven't signed any MOU with Kibaki. I wonder whether Raila signed any MOU with a certain religious organisation and if so, what his explanation of it would be.
Kibaki has stemmed the tide of defectors who see nothing but their stomachs with one stroke of a pen. ODM's great expectations of defecting ministers hit a political cul de sac because Kibaki caught them napping. All they wanted was for Kibaki to dissolve parliament in order for them to reap massively now that they were leading in the polls but the genius of Kibaki was too much for the Ordinary Docile Movement. Politicians will be agonising after the party nominations about their future and in my view, this is very healthy for our country.
I have said it here and I'll repeat; Kibaki is winning this election hands down. Someone remind me this on December 29th. I'll be in Kenya and I am going to vote for Kibaki.
WE need 5 more years of stability and growth with Kibaki.
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