Ruto woes self inflicted, political pundits say

As Deputy President William Ruto fights to reassert his political supremacy in his Rift Valley backyard, political observers say most of his current political woes are self-inflicted.

They say his poor relationship with other leaders in the region, poor media relations team and non-strategic political advisers, are to blame for his current problems.

Close allies accuse the DP of arrogance and “use-and-dump” mentality in his relations with friends, some who he has bitterly fallen out with in unclear circumstances. For instance, it struck many political observers as odd when the DP accused his former ally, Joshua Kutuny, as being among the adversaries praying for him to be jailed at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Kutuny, currently President Uhuru Kenyatta’s political adviser, is Ruto’s protégé and was one of his fiercest defenders until their surprise fallout. The DP heavily financed Kutuny’s campaigns for the Cherangany parliamentary seat in 2007.

Kutuny has repeatedly declined to speak on the source of bad blood between them, but those in the know say the fallout is linked to how he (Kutuny) got his current job.

“The person who gave Kutuny the job is the President himself. When he was defeated in Cherangany, he hung around the DP hoping he (DP) would reward him with some job, but it never came. One day, the President met him in a political function and Kutuny told him (President) he was jobless. The President told him to report to work the next Monday. The DP, it seems, did not take it kindly,” said a source who knows the genesis of the fallout. Matters are said to have been aggravated in 2013 when Kiplimo Rugut was removed as commandant of the National Youth Service (NYS) and Dr Nelson Githinji appointed in his place. Kutuny is said to have had information on Kiplimo’s impending transfer but could not reach the DP to relay it in person. He apparently made this known to other people.

Kuresoi South MP Zakayo Cheruiyot, another of Ruto’s allies-turned-enemy, has accused the DP of funding opposition to him in his constituency.

These accusations have created bad blood between the DP and a section of senior politicians from Rift Valley, especially wealthy ones from the Kanu era.

Lightweight advisers

This group feels the people the DP appointed to strategic posts, such as his political advisers, are not up to the task. While President Kenyatta appointed seasoned politicians and career civil servants to his side, Ruto’s advisers are largely lightweight in comparison.

For example, the President strategically appointed Joseph Kinyua, an experienced hand in government, as his Chief of Staff and head of Public Service. He also retained career civil servants Mutea Iringo and Francis Kimemia as principal secretaries, thus tapping into their extensive experience in the civil service.

Ruto’s suspended chief of staff Marianne Keitany is supposed to be the equivalent of Kinyua. She was tapped from Kenya Railways Corporation and lacks the kind of experience Kinyua has in high levels of government.

People who have interacted with her at the DP’s Harambee House Annex office complain that she is brash and lacks the art of delicate diplomacy required of such a high profile job. The same claims have been made against the DP’s combative personal assistant Farouk Kibet, as illustrated by an incident told to The Standard on Sunday by a former influential civil servant from Nandi County.

“Recently, a former influential DC from Baringo County came to the DP’s office for a scheduled meeting. It was in the evening and the DC was all alone in the VIP reception. The receptionist was waiting to usher him in when Farouk came in with a person he wanted to take to Ruto, but who was unwilling to wait. Bossily, he asked the DC what he was doing there and they soon quarreled. Farouk called the guards and the old man was thrown out,” said the civil servant.

“The problem with these guys is that they think everyone is coming to seek handouts from the DP. That DC is an old gentleman who is well off and I know for sure he was coming to say hi to the DP and probably offer whatever bit of advice he has, not ask for favours. How they treat people in that office has discouraged many of us,” he said.

Generally, the Jubilee government’s relationship with the media has been acrimonious at best. Both the President and the DP have repeatedly shown their disdain of the media by uncharitably claiming that newspapers are for nothing more than wrapping meat.

However, while the President keeps a robust media team despite his acerbic statements against it, Ruto’s team is less active in articulating his policies. Even in the wake of the latest corruption scandals and the onslaught by political rebels, there has been little effort by his media team to manage and repair the public damage.

“His media team is the most docile I have ever seen. This was the subject of a meeting the DP recently held in his office with the team,” said our source.

Public dialogue

The surprise creation of Jubilee Alliance Party (JAP), a party yet to gain traction and acceptance among supporters in Rift Valley, confirmed to observers that the President and the DP place little premium on public dialogue.

The rebellion facing the DP is partly caused by the reluctance by URP supporters to wind up the party and join JAP ahead of 2017. The intention of creating JAP, according to the party’s chairman David Murathe, was to make it easier for the DP to capture the Mt Kenya vote when President Kenyatta retires.

However, the manner in which it was clandestinely set up and forced on to supporters has fostered doubts in the minds of the DP’s followers about the sincerity of the move.

President Kenyatta’s visit to Bomet County last week was seen as a chance for rapprochement between the DP and South Rift rebels who have been waging an increasingly