The power of proximity: A look at the president’s blue-eyed boys

President Uhuru Kenyatta at a past event.

The powerful office has come back to the limelight in recent days after a recent outburst by MPs in former prime minister Raila Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party.

They claim that some people in the Office of the President are frustrating the ‘Handshake’, and have singled out Dr Kibicho for the woes in the deal between President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila that was sealed three years ago this month.

The legislators have accused the PS of meddling in, and even frustrating, the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).

Earlier, politicians allied to Deputy President William Ruto registered their own condemnation of the man.

Power, politics, money

Notably, ODM MPs have called for the removal of Kibicho from the Interior docket, threatening to pull out of the arrangement with the government if he remains.

Kibicho is easily among the most powerful State officials in Kenya today - however, it is not about the man, but the seat he occupies in an office whose responsibilities are wide ranging, and touch on power, politics and money.

The architecture of the Ministry of Interior and Co-ordination of National Government, which is domiciled under the Office of President, has seen every occupant of the docket adopt a larger-than-life reputation.

It, however, often evaporates into thin air upon departure from the ministry’s hot seat.

The men who have occupied the seat have left an indelible mark on the country, dating back to independence and the presidents they have served, from Jomo Kenyatta to Daniel arap Moi, Mwai Kibaki and now Uhuru Kenyatta.

At their height, names like Francis Kimemia, Mutea Iringo, Zakayo Cheruiyot and Hezekiah Oyugi carried awe, respect and sometimes disdain, depending on one’s interaction with them.

Loved and hated in equal measure, the occupiers of the office are mostly the president’s men, or through interactions with the head of State, became an integral part of the presidency.

Outside of the president and his deputy, the PS is one of very few people who consume intelligence reports on a daily basis.

The holder of the office, according to a former PS who sought anonymity due to his oath of secrecy, receives more than 10 calls from the president in a day.

“It is not an easy job. Many covet the position but it is not easy, you hardly get time for yourself or family, you are always on your toes,” said the former PS.

For starters, the office is in control of provincial administration, which has been renamed in the Uhuru government and has its tentacles in every village in the country through its cascaded power.

From regional, county and sub-county commissioners, to chiefs, their assistants and village elder, the directives of the office can be felt in every household in the country within minutes of its pronouncement.

But it is the occupiers’ control of security apparatus and investigations that has given them their biggest clout - and is often the source of the love or hate they draw.

From the police arms, including regular, General Service and Anti-Stock Theft units, to other smaller units and running of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), a PS in the Interior ministry needs to place just one call to order the snooping on, arrest or detention of someone.

A visit by this writer to Internal Ministry offices five years ago for a planned interview in the late afternoon gave the picture of the powerful office at Harambee House.

Within the hour-and-a-half that was spent waiting, four Cabinet ministers visited the office and were forced to wait in line as the PS had a meeting with the then head of intelligence and deputy inspector of police.

The who’s who in government kept trooping in and being added to the waiting list. Eventually, the interview did not materialise because the list of VIPs was swelling.

Last year, Ruto allies accused Kibicho of denying him security and ordering ‘provincial administration’ not to go to meetings attended by the second-in-command.

Because of the sensitivity of the docket and the issues it oversees related to day-to-day operations of the country, the PS in charge is said to have a cash safe with between Sh20 million and Sh30 million that must be replenished on a weekly basis. 

This money is to be used at the discretion of the PS in the carrying out of his duties.

It is part if this cash that could have caused the recent acrimony when BBI Secretariat Co-chair Junet Mohamed alluded that his team was being starved.

“We do not care, we can even fundraise for BBI if they do not want to support us. But the operatives at Harambee House are frustrating the process,” said the Suna East MP.

Transition politics

Before getting into the coveted office, Kibicho, a former University of Nairobi lecturer, was in the Foreign Affairs docket.

His tenure comes at a time when the country is about to transition from a fourth to fifth president and is caught up in the political melee that comes with the anticipated change of guard. 

He finds himself in a similar position to Nyandarua Governor Francis Kimemia’s in 2013 when Kibaki was handing over power.

And just like Kimemia was accused of attempting to influence succession politics, Kibicho has found himself in a similar space and defended himself by saying he is just doing his work.

After Ruto allies accused him of playing politics, Siaya Senator James Orengo added that the PS was meddling in political issues and warned him to keep off.

“They need to pick the cue from the likes of Francis Muthaura ... they should stop meddling in politics,” said Orengo.

Kibicho took over from Iringo, who served in both Kibaki and Uhuru’s governments.

During his tenure, Iringo was accused of working with some political operatives to help the International Criminal Court (ICC) in its case against Uhuru and Ruto.

Kimemia, who started out as a district officer in the late 1970s, also served under both Kibaki and Uhuru before going into politics.

In the Mzee Moi era, Cheruiyot, Oyugi and Wildred Kimalat stood out. 

Cheruiyot, popularly referred to as ZK, was the PS Internal Security between 1997 and 2003, when Moi retired and Kibaki took over.

Like Iringo and now Kibicho, he served at a critical moment of transition.

Cheruiyot rose to the position after over a decade in the civil service, and his power often dwarfed that of other ministers in the last term of the former president.

He would later become MP for Kuresoi.

But the story of this seat cannot be better without mentioning arguably the most powerful man to sit in the docket.

Oyugi rose from being a provincial commissioner in the 80s and is said to have been both powerful and ruthless in the execution of his duties.

Stories are told of how the Moi-era man was feared by ministers, senior politicians and civil servants, including his bosses.