Why rebelling public presents tough times for Ruto, Raila

It is a shift that has tested the foundations of the traditional political establishments and kept the political class at the edge of their seats as a growing wave of discontent, open criticism and hostility from the populace gains root.

And as President William Ruto, opposition chief Raila Odinga and their lieutenants mull ways to win back public support and rally Kenyans to their course, the rebellion is growing from several quarters.

While the backbone of the pushback against the political class is taking place majorly in social media, its spillage has cascaded to some constituencies where several leaders, especially in the Mt Kenya region, are facing a backlash for backing the Kenya Kwanza administration.

To them, even visiting their constituencies has become a tall order since they participated in the impeachment of former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.

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"It is true Kenyans are unhappy and, as a party, we must tread very carefully. We also noticed the lack of interest in the party elections we held about two weeks ago. Very few members turned up, and their concern was our support for controversial policies," said the leader.

Observers believe the pushback by Kenyans is already getting into the skin of the politicians as they struggle to contain a grouping that once danced to their tunes with little questions.

“There is growing public dissatisfaction and the pressure of looming re-election campaigns. The President faces the critical task of regaining trust and delivering on his promises,” says Gitile Naituli, a lecturer at Multimedia University.

This week, a seemingly frustrated President lashed out at those he claimed were on a mission to derail all the projects his administration is pursuing.

While on a development tour of Taita Taveta county early in the week, the President’s frustration was evident as he questioned how the public sentiment had shifted so drastically against him.

Critics have intensely scrutinised several of his flagship projects such as Taifa Care, affordable housing, the national livestock vaccination campaign, the university funding model and the contentious Adani agreements.

His choice of words, body language and the social media mockery that followed his speech highlight the growing discontent and rebellion against his administration.

In an attempt to address the backlash, Ruto equated the wave of dissent to an evil spirit undermining national progress.

“Wakenya tafadhali, kuna pepo chafu ya kupinga kila kitu. Affordable housing, chanjo ya ng’ombe, kubadilisha mfumo wa university zetu, hata matoleo kanisani, kila kitu inapinga. What is this, surely?” Kenyans please, there is a spirit of opposining everything. Affordable housing, livestock vaccination, university funding model, church offerings, everything!), he said during the groundbreaking of the Devki Iron Processing Project.

In social media, disconnected Kenyans have been making memes to mock the Kenya Kwanza administration and its policies.

The clergy, who overwhelmingly supported his presidential campaign, have also joined in the growing chorus of criticism, urging Ruto to realign his administration.

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A few voices in the Judiciary have also come out to question the country's priorities over the delays in reconstituting the IEBC.

With the growing discontent, every decision Ruto makes has come under intense scrutiny.

While his allies have called for patience, urging Kenyans to allow more time for the policies to bear fruit, many citizens argue that two years is enough to judge the Kenya Kwanza administration’s performance.

This is the same predicament Raila has found himself in as social media trolls unleash their rebellion on him and his troops who are now defending the Kenya Kwanza administration.

“After he joined government, some Kenyans feel that Odinga betrayed his followers and doesn’t deserve the AUC seat,” Prof Naituli observes.

Kenyans opposed to Raila’s AU bid have rallied their support behind Djibouti’s former Foreign Affairs Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.

“What is happening across the social spectrum where people are venting out is as a result of an accumulation of unsolved issues that negatively impact on their lives,” Joseph Omondi, a social analyst and a governance expert, says.

“The sense of political betrayal has disoriented the people who feel that the government was unwilling to address their social and economic plight, which has disrupted their normal way of life,” Mr Omondi adds.

He says failure by the government, which is mandated to resolve people’s problems and restore their hope, has “given rise to this new phenomenon of sudden bouts of impulsive, aggressive, violent or angry verbal outbursts amongst the citizenry, with the anger being directed to the government and leaders.”

Omondi says by resorting to social media to hurl insults at leaders and institutions of governance, the people were only venting their anger which has been accumulating.

“By using social media to express their feelings, victims undergo a therapeutic and healing process as they feel they have relieved what was ailing them in their hearts,” Omondi notes.

He says mounting anger and a sense of betrayal by the government has been witnessed amongst residents of the Mt Kenya region following the ouster of Rigathi Gachagua from the position of Deputy President.

 Andrew Nyabuto, another social and political analyst, says the government had failed to read and interpret the indicators of social strife and take remedial action.

“Aristotle, a leading philosopher, said psychology is part of the soul. What we are experiencing now are behavioural problems associated with some deep-rooted socio-psychological issues that have remained unaddressed for a very long time,” Nyabuto says, adding:

“When a cup is full to the brim, it overflows. The anger we are witnessing from people and which is manifested in the posts being made in social media indicate that their souls are ailing, and that is why they are emitting anger.”

Julius Kariuki, a political strategist, says the country’s leadership had failed to establish a convergence point with the people, creating a breakdown of communication and enhancing a sense of anger and betrayal among the people.

“There is an absence of a meeting point between the rulers and the governed to address pressing social issues which are exerting pressure on the people,” Dr Kariuki says.

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“A good leader at this age and era must seek to establish effective channels of communication with the people to sustain a harmonious working relationship and also maintain the people’s trust and confidence in the leadership,” Kariuki opines.

Former Molo MP Njenga Mungai says the country’s political landscape had rapidly changed over the past few years due to the advent of social media platforms.

“The mounting socio-economic and political problems in the country, coupled with the use of social media to convey information, poses a great challenge to those in leadership to effectively manage their relationship with the people,” Mungai says.

Mungai who is the chairman of the Jubilee Party’s council of elders, attributed Kenyans' frustrations to unfulfilled aspirations and broken promises made by their leaders.

In the Mt Kenya region, several leaders who supported Gachagua's impeachment are walking on a troubled path as the wave of criticism continues to cascade across the region.

Residents accuse their leaders of betraying the country by failing to address critical issues affecting the public.

This, perhaps, is the reason members of Kirogo village in Murang'a denied Deputy President Kithure Kindiki's allies to read his speech during the burial of an MCA two weeks ago.

Others who received a cold welcome included President Ruto's adviser and former Trade Cabinet Secretary Moses Kuria. Kuria, however, pulled through his speech despite murmurs in the crowd.