The Supreme Court of Kenya might have granted the leading opposition coalition flag bearer in the upcoming “Fresh Elections” a new chance to pull (for a second time in a year) the trigger of an aging political gun to release the “last” of the remaining final bullets therein. But whether or not the trigger to be pulled will release a bullet and hit the desired target is a determination to be made by the over 15 million registered voters who will come out again to exercise their democratic and constitutional right to directly participate in voting for their President.
Of interest to me at this point in time is how the order by the SCoK has thrown off balance, a majority if not all of the political elites, around the current NASA presidential candidate. It is no secret that there are politicians milling around him who had already expressed interest in going for the top seat come 2022. If you asked them in a room where “baba’s” spy agents are absent, the people in reference here would easily reveal to you that they would wish to see a UHURU win far from anything near a RAILA win.
There are many reasons (pro or against) this kind of an observation; including the one you already have but never mind that these guys will intensely campaign for Uhuru in their inaudible prayers at night and loudly for the National Super Alliance coalition candidate during the day.
One term presidency promise hard to keep
I have no doubt in my mind that the elite politicians around Joshua who have higher ambitions welcomed an indication by Raila aka 'Joshua' that he would not be submitting himself as a presidential candidate in another election in future as was reported in a Financial Times publication in August 2017.
If he were to keep his word, by the way, he would technically not be a candidate in the fresh elections ordered by the court after the nullification of the results of the just concluded August presidential election.
Going by the vigour with which Raila has over the years invested in and is investing in to push for entry into the highest office in Kenya’s land, (although Kalonzo and my friend Mwangi Waituru would strongly disagree with me,) I find Joshua one politician who can never pull a Mandela to become a one-term president should his political gun happen to pull a magical surprise in future.
This is one of the major reasons that most of the top politicians would be inclined to fall in love with a second term for Uhuru.
An uhuru kenyatta win for a second term at state house will, to politicians with eyes fixed on their future political ambitions, mean that Joshua will not be very active politically in the years ahead to secure the same political allies and sufficient support to win a presidential election. Uhuru’s win will also extend Joshua’s wait for an entry into 'Canaan' by five years. This is a welcome possibility to a younger politician as it translates the Presidential race in 2022 or 23 to a very open one considering that Kenyatta would have already served a second term in office.
Kalonzo Musyoka
I have already noted that it would be very difficult for a Joshua president to pull a Mandela. That he would want to go for a second term is a broad fact that will definitely push his running mate’s presidential ambition forward by a further 10 years, meaning that Kalonzo Musyoka would only vie for the presidency under a NASA arrangement at the age of 73. Remember he has already expressed concern at 63 that he would not wish to shelve his desire to occupy the president’s seat any longer. I bet he would not want to wait until 73 to be on the presidential ballot paper as flag bearer. He is one politician I strongly believe is well politically positioned to root for a Uhuru second term in silence as he prepares for bigger things in 2022.
Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi
The NASA designer Musalia Mudavadi is not any different from Kalonzo in this context. The only thing that favors him is his age but I am also not sure he is prepared for a long wait. He would be comfortable with a more open field in 2022. He would be hesitant to put up with a scenario where Joshua will be on stage to defend a seat and power that he would have worked so hard to secure.
Moses Wetangula
I find Moses Wetangula comfortable where he is as a Senator and is one person I think would be comfortable with the opportunities that come with whatever comes with the changing political environment in Kenya. He is yet to express a strong interest in the country’s top leadership unless he comes out differently to overshadow the likes of Kalonzo and Mudavadi from his side of the political league.
Hassan Joho
Ali Hassan Joho, though from a small island in the country’s political main water bodies is a man who has even recently in the presence of his party leader vowed to move to the next level. Come next general elections he will not be eligible for the race to the seat of Governor in Mombasa County. He would most likely want to keep his word and go for the Presidency in 2022. It would be easy for him to go for such in a field of equals and where chances of winning are higher not when a Joshua presidency is in action and under pressure to go for a second term.
William Ruto the man to beat in 2022
Deputy President William Ruto seats on a very smooth springboard to statehouse’s top seat. He will campaign vigorously for Uhuru Kenyatta.
If Uhuru wins the in the coming fresh election’s which the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has slated for October 17, and endorses him come 2022, he becomes the man to beat. A man in whose team most of the politicians I have mentioned above would want to be. Ruto will be the man they would wish to compete with in 2022 instead of risking being in a competitive environment where they would be trying to counter the second term by Joshua.
