The silent message in recent visit to Kenya by America's First Lady Jill Biden

The Mathayo story tickled me during the recent visit to Kenya by US First Lady Jill Biden. By virtue of being Joe Biden's wife, she wields more power, real and symbolic, than any member of the US State Department. She visited Africa at a time when the US is in desperate need to reestablish its foothold on the continent. She landed in Kenya at a time when opposition leader Raila Odinga and his troops were holding defiance rallies, replete with militia songs, and messages of intent to push William Ruto out of State House. Dr Biden spent some quality time with Kenya's First Lady, Rachel Ruto, women and youth groups. She visited Raila's political bedroom in Kibra, then travelled to Kajiado County. She then met President Ruto and left the country without engaging any of the opposition leaders. The US has throughout its history of flexing muscles used diplomats and first ladies to make impactful political statements.

America is gently elbowing its way back to Kenya and Africa. For years now, China has occupied the place that the US and other Western powers had fought hard to retain since the Cold War era. Then, the Western powers, in their arrogance, started to strangle African countries with tough economic conditionalities. Many development projects were tied to tough conditions.

During the Cold War, China's presence in Africa was insignificant. Yet, says Martin Meredith in his book, The State of Africa, "the reputation the Chinese gained throughout much of Africa at the time, in African eyes as much as in the Western view, was of a dangerous breed of men, capable of any feat of subversion. When China's premier, Zhou En-lai, made a tour of African states between December 1963 and February 1964, his very appearance was taken as an ominous sign. The Lagos Daily Times described him as 'one of the world's most dangerous men'." During the Cold War, most of Africa was turned into an ideological and sometimes real battleground between forces backed by the West and those supported by the Soviet Union.

In the 1960s, as African states broke free from colonial chains, they faced daunting challenges. The continent then was the poorest and least developed on earth. Most African leaders embarked on social and economic growth of their states without any infrastructure. Colonialists had selfishly developed roads and railway lines to serve narrow, selfish economic interests. The interior of Africa remained inaccessible.

Gradually, corruption creeped in and external debt grew, and by the 1980's, says Martin Meredith; "The impact on ordinary life was calamitous. Hospitals and clinics ran short of medicines and equipment; schools lacked textbooks; factories closed through lack of raw materials or spare parts for machinery; living standards plummeted"

Nigeria, Africa's economic giant, had oil and a population to turn it into one of the richest nations on earth. However, the oil boom turned to bust. The late Nigerian writer Ken Saro Wiwa, in his novel Prisoners of Jebs, says; "Of all the countries who had black gold, Nigeria was the only one that succeeded in doing absolutely nothing with it."

Many countries staggered from stable and promising entities, into strife stricken, homes of misrule. The West, had advertently encouraged corruption in some countries. By the 1980s, most of Africa had sunk deep into misfortune, haunted by military coups and brutal dictatorships. The continent had entered into its darkest period of violence, economic decline and decay. Edem Kodjo, the then secretary general of the Organisation of African Union (OAU), the precursor to the African Union (AU), told African heads of state during an OAU summit; "Our ancient continent is on the brink of disaster, hurtling towards the abyss of confrontation, caught in the grip of violence, sinking into the dark night of blood-shed and death.... Gone are the smiles, the joys of life."

As Africa disintegrated, the powerful Soviet Union was crumbling. In 1989, the Berlin Wall came down and the World Order dramatically changed. With its eyes closed, the US maintained its hardline stance of linking economic aid to good governance. But these rules didn't apply to some countries where US had identified major economic interests.

By the time it opened its eyes, China had sneaked in, romanticised African leaders, and became the biggest economic player on the continent. In Kenya, the Mwai Kibaki and Uhuru Kenyatta governments went full throttle to China. They entered the innermost chambers of the Chinese bedroom.

History has shown that the US, during and after the Cold War, supported anyone that promoted its interests. Anyone who promised to fight the Communist, became a US darling. General Joseph Desire Mobutu, who seized power through a military coup in the Congo in 1965, became a valuable asset to the US. Washington was determined to ensure the Congo remained a pro-Western bulwark against Soviet ambitions in Africa.

Mobutu made his first trip to Washington in May 1963 as a guest of President John Fitzgerald Kennedy. During a photo session inside the Rose Garden, Kennedy remarked: 'General, if it hadn't been for you, the whole thing would have collapsed and the Communists would have taken over.' Mobutu was a precious guest. The US opened doors of favour wide for him. He asked for military equipment and training. He requested for six weeks of parachute instruction for himself at Ford Benning and Fort Braggs. Kennedy was only too willing to oblige. Mobutu was even given a command aircraft for his personal use and a permanent US Air Force crew to go with it. He conducted the coup as a US insider and remained on the CIA's payroll, receiving regular briefings from Larry Devlin, the CIA station chief in Leopoldville (today Kinshasa).

He amassed wealth and power while the US cheered him on. In August 1970, he visited the US again. President Richard Nixon described him as a leader of stability and vision. Nixon told him; "Though you are a young man and you come from a young nation, there are things we can learn from you."

Mobutu grew more ambitious and greedier. He turned Congo into a single party state. He accumulated vast personal wealth, ruling by decree and controlling all appointments and promotions. He even took up a new name; Mobutu Sese Seko Kuku Ngbendu Wa Za Banga, which in his Ngbendu language translation meant; "The warrior who knows no defeat because of his endurance and inflexible will and is all powerful, leaving fire in his wake as he goes from conquest to conquest"

In November 1982, George Bush, while serving as vice president, visited Zaire. Mobutu had just imprisoned Etienne Tshisekedi wa Mulumba, a former Prime Minister turned opposition (father of the current president Felix). He had killed other dissidents. Bush told Mobutu; "I have come to admire, Mr President, your personal courage and leadership in Africa." During one of Mobutu's many visits to the White House, Bush said; "Zaire is among America's oldest friends and its president- President Mobutu-one of our most valued friends...and we are proud and very; very pleased to have you with us today."

Mobutu also struck friendship with President Ronald Reagan.

In her second memoir, Hard Choices, Hillary Clinton details her life as Secretary of State in the Obama administration. She indicates that the US foreign policies are driven by US interests. She asks; "Will Africa's future be defined more by guns and graft or growth and good governance?" She says that, she and President Obama, knew that helping Africa tip toward opportunity instead of conflict was not likely to make big headlines in the US, but it could yield big benefits for the United States.

By 2009, China had replaced US as Africa's largest trading partner. Chinese companies would enter a market and sign lucrative contracts to extract resources which they would ship back to Asia. China would in return built eye-catching infrastructure projects.

Barack Obama comes out clear on the issue of US interests. He says in his memoir; A Promised Land, that; "there were limits to what a diplomatic charm offensive could accomplish. At the end of the day, each nation's foreign policy remained driven by its own economic interests, geography, ethnic and religious schisms, territorial disputes, and most of all, the imperatives of those who had and sought to maintain power."

Obama says that repressive leaders learned to ignore public opinion. As President of the US, he needed tact to deal with dictators: "I needed a second kind of diplomacy, one of concrete rewards and punishments designed to alter the calculations of hard, ruthless leaders."

It is this selfish Western approach to global issues that threw the middle east into turmoil. Iran, was once an epicentre of science and art during Islam's medieval golden age. In 1951, Iran's secular, left leaning parliament moved to nationalise the country's oil fields. It seized control of profits that used to go to the British government. The British government owned a majority stake in Iran's biggest oil production and export company. The British felt threatened by the parliamentary move and imposed a naval blockade to prevent Iran from shipping out oil.

Obama says that the British; "Also convinced the Eisenhower administration that the new Iranian government was tilting towards the Soviets, leading Eisenhower to green-light Operation Ajax, a CIA-M16-engineered coup that deposed Iran's democratically elected prime minister and consolidated power in the hands of the country's young monarch, Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi"

Operation Ajax, says Obama, set a pattern for US miscalculation in dealing with developing countries that lasted throughout the Cold War. The superpower would mistake nationalist aspirations for Communist plots. It would equate commercial interests with national security. The US; "would subvert democratically elected governments and align itself with autocrats; when we determined it was to our benefit"

Then, in 1980, with the support of the West, Iraq attempted to invade Iran. The incursion sparked a bloody eight-year war. Gulf states armed Saddam Hussein while the Soviets supplied weapons to Iran. Obama says that; "The United States under Reagan, cynically tried to have it both ways, publicly backing Iraq while secretly selling arms to Iran)." That was US doubled edged foreign policy.

Hilary Clinton says in her first memoir, Living History, that, when she entered into the White House, one of her first tasks was to recruit staffers, pick office space and learn intricacies of the traditional First Lady duties.

She delves into details that shed light on the potential purpose and intent of Dr Jill Biden's visit to Kenya. First ladies, move, shift and impact on government policies of the countries they visit.

"Over the years, as first ladies expanded their duties, their staff grew bigger and more specialised. Jackie Kennedy was the first to have her own press secretary. Lady Bird Johnson organised her staff structure to reflect that of the West Wing. Rosalynn Carter's staff director operated as a chief of staff and attended daily meetings with the president's staff.

Nancy Reagan increased the size and prominence of her staff within the White House. Not only had Jackie Kennedy been a superb first lady, bringing style, grace and intelligence to the White House, she also had done an extraordinary job raising her children," writes Hillary

Eleanor Roosevelt had championed many causes; civil rights, child labour laws, refugees and human rights. She attracted harsh criticism from the media and government quarters for daring to define the role of first lady in her own terms. She was called many names. She was described as a homey old meddler and communist agitator. One senior administrator once told her to stop interfering and "stick to knitting". But she never let her critics slow her down."

During the Clinton's first years at the White House, Hillary says; "Once it became clear I would make the controversial trip to China, the administration requested that I stop for an overnight visit in Mongolia, a former Soviet satellite that in 1990 had chosen the path of democracy rather than follow the Communist lead of neighbouring China. The fledgling democracy was struggling because the spigot of Soviet aid had been turned off, and the country faced difficult economic times. It was important for the US to show support for the Mongolian people and their elected leadership, and a visit from the First Lady to one of the most remote capitals of the world was one way to do it."

Hillary has special memories about her visits to Africa. She traversed the continent, spending time with Nelson Mandela on Robben Island and joining Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe for dinner.

She refers to Uganda's President Yoweri Museveni as a charismatic leader, who led the campaign against HIV/Aids, by confronting head-on problems that traditionally had been ignored and neglected in the rest of the continent.

In August 2009, Hillary visited Kenya with US Trade Representative Ron Kirk. The duo attended the annual trade and investment meeting held under the African Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa). The AGOA legislation was signed by President Bill Clinton 2000 to increase African exports to the United States.

Hillary Clinton met President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, who were sharing power in a Grand Coalition Government.

"They came to meet me in the hope I would tell them that President Obama would visit soon. I explained instead that the president and I were concerned about the flawed election, political violence, and rampant corruption, and that the president expected more from them," says Hillary

After the meeting, the US offered to help improve Kenya's electoral system. Along with the UK, the US offered assistance in registering voters and electronically counting votes. The US also stepped-up support to the Kenyan military as it joined the fight in Somalia against Al Shabaab. Kenya is an economic and strategic hub for East Africa.

As Dr Jill Biden ended her tour of Kenya, President Ruto announced that JP Morgan, one of the world's leading financial services firms, would establish its regional office in Nairobi.

JP Morgan is the symbol of American capitalism with a history of lending funds to the US government as early as in the 19th century. Ruto said that the move, was a vote for Kenya's emerging success in the global marketplace. He said it was a sign of confidence in Kenya's economy. The JP Morgan announcement and the visit were well coordinated and powerful statement to the Chinese that the Eagle had landed.

While the opposition refuse to acknowledge Ruto's presidency, Ruto, like Mathayo, continues to stagger through the complex economic hardships Kenya is facing. The US, its First Lady and western allies, will, like the Mathayo eight, pounce on anyone threatening the opportunity to reestablish its place at the African dinner table which still smells of Chinese cuisine.