Willy Mutunga: Neither Raila Odinga nor William Ruto has answer to Kenya's problems

Former Chief Justice of Kenya Willy Mutunga during an interview with The Standard in Nairobi. [Elvis Ogina, Standard]

Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga believes neither Azimio la Umoja of Raila Odinga nor William Ruto’s United Democratic Alliance can deliver Kenyans from the socio-economic challenges they are facing.

In an interview with The Standard from his Nairobi home, Prof Mutunga, who retired six years ago, says he is not persuaded enough to side with either of the coalitions even though some of his friends and reform activists he admires or has worked with are active members on both sides. 

The former CJ believes Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana would have changed Kenya for the better had he contested the presidency and won. Mutunga cites the development that Prof Kibwana oversaw in Makueni, terming it a pointer to what the governor would have done for the country.

Kibwana had announced he would run for the country’s top job before shelving his ambitions to back Raila and his running mate Martha Karua. The 75-year-old Mutunga speaks of how he toyed with the idea of throwing his hat into the ring to contest the presidency after Kibwana disappointed him by pulling out of the race. 

Mutunga starts the interview by cautioning that he is walking on eggshells, given his friends, including senior lawyer Ahmednasir Abdullahi and civil society members such as Prof Makau Mutua, are now diehard supporters of either UDA or Azimio.

“I am the lone voice in the wilderness. I am talking to Kenyans and telling them they are being lied to. It doesn’t matter who wins this election, the status quo will not change,” says Mutunga.

He says he will not support Raila and Karua. He also thinks Kenya Kwanza presidential candidate Ruto’s bottom-up economic model is divisive and a purely populist idea.

However, Mutunga lauds Raila’s decision to pick Karua for a running mate and hopes she can run for the top seat one day.

“She has morals, is a brilliant advocate, and a champion of human rights. Martha is incorruptible, a good lawyer, and a tough campaigner. She is also stubborn and strong-willed,” he says.

“I remember Karua’s days in the civil society movement and as a magistrate. I think the country may soon have a female president.”

But he insists he has doubts the Raila-Karua combination will achieve anything for the country if they win the August 9 elections.

“Their joint ticket may not give the country the radical turnaround the two are known for, especially because of those who are around them who behave like crocodiles in a pool,” says Mutunga.

“Whichever side wins, I have to wait and see how they perform after 100 days. Raila had a radical past, but I am still skeptical.”

Mutunga does not also favour the Ruto-Gachagua ticket, terming their dynasty versus hustler narrative “smart tools for mobilising the people”.

He dismisses Ruto’s approach to the next elections, likening it to the populism employed by former US President Donald Trump when he won the 2017 elections, and Adolf Hitler, who was the dictator of Germany from 1933 until his death in 1945, who rose to power as the leader of the Nazi Party and was known for his inflammatory remarks.

“Ruto is a bright guy. He knew this narrative of dynasty and hustler would catch the attention of the people and he appears to have achieved it to a large extent. He has brought a social class discussion and it seems the Azimio brigade has no responses to the issues they are raising,” says Mutunga. 

“But this is purely populist. If you look at the case of Trump and Hitler, you realise they were people who mobilised the masses with the sole purpose of getting to power. If this issue is not handled properly, it can lead to problems, including fueling hate.”

Asked who he would vote for, Mutunga replies: “Why do I need to vote? Anyway, I have taken a position and I know it is critical. I spent three years trying to get Kibwana to run for president because I thought he would win and change Kenya. I felt he could use his experience in Makueni to give birth to a new brand of politics that would take Kenya forward,” he says.

He also pokes hotels in some of the promises Kenya Kwanza has made, questioning where they will get the money they intend to use to bankroll the programmes.

Raila has promised a Sh6,000 monthly stipend for the poor but he had not explained how he will raise the money and the criteria that will be used to select beneficiaries, among other questions.

“I have issues with that. Where is the money coming from? This will become messy and it is not too late for us to talk about it. But I may be wrong, let us wait to see what happens after 100 days,” says Mutunga.

Mutunga says he has been watching The Crown on Netflix. The drama by showrunner Peter Morgan chronicles the life of Queen Elizabeth II from the 1940s to modern times. The former CJ digs into Kenya’s history on nominations to the Legislative Council of Kenya (LegCo) between 1907 and 1963.

He says leaders such as Bernard Mate, Ronald Ngala, Tom Mboya, Oginga Odinga, Masinde Muliro, Kenya’s second president Daniel Moi and James Muimi were all nominated by their communities as representatives in LegCo because of their leadership abilities and not money.

Mutunga is convinced Kibwana would have offered Kenyans alternative leadership and a better brand of politics.

Mutunga says Kibwana, on three occasions, rejected his suggestion to run for president. 

“I later felt I should get into the ring and contest the presidency on the ticket of the United Political Front (UPF), a coalition that consisted of United Green Movement (UGM), the Communist Party of Kenya (CPK), and Ukweli Party (UP),” he said.

But the coalition fizzled out as fast as it had appeared. 

Mutunga remembers the days he was in the trenches fighting for a better Kenya and that is why he thought of vying for the presidency after he failed to get a breakthrough with Kibwana. “But then I thought I have no energy for it.”

He says the entry of George Wajackoyah into the presidential race has been made possible by the 2010 Constitution. However, Mutunga does not buy Wajackoyah’s idea to hang people.

On the stalemate between the Judiciary and President Uhuru Kenyatta over six judges that the Head of State ignored while appointing other judges in June 2021, Mutunga says the best option to resolve it is dialogue.