NAIROBI, Kenya, Aug 3- The dramatic move to deny Deputy President William Ruto clearance to fly to Uganda has evoked tension across political divides, amidst a pandemic and months to the August 2022 elections.
Was it necessary? Is it law? Or just another political move?
The Deputy President is said to have camped at the Wilson Airport for two hours, after which his intended private trip to the neighbouring country aborted.
He was driven back to his Karen residence after the ‘embarrassing’ incident, officials said.
The Deputy President later in a Tweet said “Isoarait…tumwachie mungu (it is okay, we leave it to God.”
The Deputy President was scheduled to travel to Uganda alongside close allies among them Kiharu Member of Parliament Ndindi Nyoro, legislators Oscar Sudi (Kapseret ), Benjamin Tayari, Harun Aydin, David Lagat, Eric Ruto and Elijah Rono.
According to a flight manifest from Phoenix Aviation, he was to use a private jet on flight number Jadestar 12.
The plane he was to use; a Cessna 560XL registered using tail number 5Y WHB, had already been prepared for flight but its crew was told at the last minute that their VVIP guest would not be flying after all.
“We are surprised the Deputy President was denied clearance to go on a planned private visit to Uganda. It is our officers who always handle his travel and this time, they were told, that he must get clearance from Immigration to fly out. In all his travels, all these years, this has not happened,” the DP’s office said through his communication secretary David Mugonyi.
The DP’s trip was meant to board the plane at 1pm but he was stopped by the immigration officials.
While the Deputy President’s officials said he was asked for a clearance from the Head of Public Service Joseph Kinyua, when asked, he said he was not aware.
The MP’s who were to accompany the Deputy president later managed to travel after National Assembly Speaker Justin Muturi’s nod.
Them too had been asked for clearance.
“We are surprised. This has never happened in the last nine years,” Mugonyi said.
A senior official at the Office of the president said such trips are cleared by the president.
“You get you clearance from your boss. There’s only one boss for the DP,” said a senior official at the OP.
This was to be the second trip by the DP to Uganda.
Last month, the Deputy President was in Uganda and was hosted by President Yoweri Museveni.
He also flew to Zanzibar for another private meeting with some of the officials present in the Monday’s event.
MP Nyoro who is already in Uganda later said the move was only meant to “intimidate and humiliate” the Deputy President.
“You can block the Deputy President William Ruto and humiliate him all you want but everything has an end. We have seen many come and go. History is replete with such cowards. Any administration that uses covert power to intimidate and humiliate it’s citizens and leaders is incapable of structural use of legitimate power,” the MP wrote on his Facebook page.
“The current administration makes many shiver of what would have become of our country if the current leadership succeeded in 2002. At least President Mwai Kibaki built strong institutions that remain as fair arbiters and checks the despondency of some government charlatans.”
President Kenyatta and his Deputy have fell out during the second and final term of their presidency due to unknown reasons.
The President has shown indications he will be rooting for another candidate to succeed him, a move that angered those allied to the Deputy President.
It had been assumed that the President will ‘honour’ his word and support his Deputy.
The Monday move is however seen as one with the potential of creating unnecessary political tensions, months to the elections.
But to those supporting President Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, there was nothing wrong with it.
Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen however dismissed the move as “sheer act of impunity and gross violation of the constitution.”
As political leaders engaged in a bare-knuckle social media engagement over the Monday incident, so were bloggers and other social media users- some using facts or misinformation, to justify their ‘line of thinking’.
Between 2007-2008, after a heated electioneering period and a disputed presidential outcome, more than 1,200 people were killed during the violence that ensued. 600,000 others were internally displaced.
The President and his Deputy were among 6 individuals who were charged at the Hague based International Criminal Court (ICC).
Others included Henry Kosgey, the then secretary to the cabinet Francis Muthaura, former police chief Mohammed Hussein Ali and then radio executive Joshua Arap Sang.
Prominent leaders led by the former United Nations Secretary General, the late Kofi Annan brokered a peace deal that saw a Government of National Unity formed between President Mwai Kibaki and the former Prime Minister.
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