SUNDAY TIMES
Prof. Maathai___________
When Professor Wangari Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her extraordinary tree planting efforts she was already a politician in elective politics. She was serving as a Member of Parliament and an Assistant Minister for Environment and Natural Resources to boot. Africans in general and Kenyans in particular (and women you may add), the world over celebrated her achievement.
When Professor Wangari Maathai was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her extraordinary tree planting efforts she was already a politician in elective politics. She was serving as a Member of Parliament and an Assistant Minister for Environment and Natural Resources to boot. Africans in general and Kenyans in particular (and women you may add), the world over celebrated her achievement.
As a politician she was, it was accepted and seen appropriate for her to continue with her professional work as a “politician” (as majority of our politicians are). After her award many expected President Mwai Kibaki would elevate her to a full Cabinet position befitting her new international status. But because of complex regional and tribal balancing in Cabinet appointments her appointment to the full Cabinet was not to be. Her desire to want to remain in elective politics and to want to continue to represent her then Tetu constituents in the National Assembly became natural.
Despite her international fame, Prof Maathai sought and lost in the Party of National Unity, or PNU party, parliamentary nominations. Being a professional politician as she is and like others in the same mindset she gave herself a nomination ticket of her own Mazingira Party without the trouble of going through any democratic process. Thus, she went ahead to have her name in the ballot to defend her Tetu parliamentary seat. Here again she lost resoundingly. Now where is the credibility that she had earned as a Peace Laureate?
The sad thing about this African first woman laureate is that she did not only lose her parliamentary seat in the last Election but also her wider respect in the country. The way I see and many see it is that, Prof Maathai (the laureate) lost the moral authority to talk about anything political that pertains to Kenya.
But opportunists as many Kenyan politicians are, Prof Maathai now wants to remain relevant in the country and on a higher ground than her fellow professional politicians, winners or losers. As a Kenyan, she has every right to comment on issues political or otherwise. But she must recognize that she can remain as relevant as any other loser politician, or former MP, or former assistant minister and not more, not less. She cannot start using her “Nobel Peace Laureate” status and present herself above others.
For instance, when she says she is not happy with the Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka-led team appointed by President Mwai Kibaki to deal with national reconciliation, she carries no weight or much more weight as the former Lamu East MP Mohamed Hashim has pointed out the same.
The former youthful Local Government junior minister like Maathai also served as a legislator and an Assistant Minister and there many others like them. That is why I found it odd when some Kenyan columnists rushed to defend her. In one such defence one avowed gender activist columnist wrote: “Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Maathai is back in full flow. It is good to see her break free of the captivity of elective politics. Being MP for Tetu obviously had its advantages and she fought hard and valiantly to retain the seat.” It further added: “But some of us have always believed that she should never have compromised her independence by getting into politics proper. There are many ways to serve your people, and Parliament is not necessarily the right place to do an honest job.” Boldly speaking, Prof Maathai should shut up and concentrate on the tree planting that earned her the Nobel Peace Prize.
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Keep up good job, Mr Minister
The appointment of Samuel Poghisio as the new Minister for Information and Communication is one of the best appointments in the President Kibaki partial seventeen member Cabinet. I know it has been less than one month since the Kacheliba legislator was named to the Cabinet post, but the early signs in the job are first-rate and as they say “dalili ya mvua ni mawingu”.
I say so because of the manner in which the newly appointed Information and Communication Minister has taken his job seriously is exactly what is suppose to be. I have always been an advocate of having the person who heads the Information and Communication docket be the overall government spokesperson and Poghisio fits this crucial mantle. His two predecessors Raphael Tuju and Mutahi Kagwe never became the authoritative in the ministry.
There are some instances where the Communication Secretary (a.k.a Official Government spokesperson) Alfred Mutua cannot enter into a war of words with political bigwigs in the country such as Raila Odinga, William Ruto or Anyang Nyongo et al. particularly at this moment and time in the country. Dr Mutua can and is usually dismissed as is a government bureaucrat with no political capital to talk about current political situation.
But Poghisio being a Cabinet Minister, legislator and a national chairman of a major political party in the country (ODM Kenya) is better positioned and equipped and has the political capital to respond to any government and or president criticism and square the issues for the benefit of all.
The Minister has taken charge in being the official Cabinet and or Government mouth in the on going mediation talks headed by Annan. In responding to ODM and its leaders criticism of the Government, Poghisio spoke with authority that befits a political leader and a Minister. I say kudos to Poghisio for the manner in which he started to run his new portfolio.
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Sunday Times -Kenya
Updated on: Sunday, February 03, 2008
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