Dennis Onyango
6 May 2007
Nairobi — In trailblazing style Lang'ata MP, Mr Raila Odinga, launches his presidential bid in what is seen as making a statement, writes Dennis Onyango.
All is set for what is expected to be a groundbreaking event where Lang'ata MP, Mr Raila Odinga will present his manifesto and vision at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre, on Sunday.
Lang'ata MP Raila Odinga.
Raila told a media briefing on Saturday that the vision launch would go hand-in-hand with the mourning of the lives lost in the Kenya Airways plane crash early on Saturday.
He said guests would observe a moment of silence in honour of the dead and people would put on dresses that indicate grief.
"As we launch the vision, we will also show our plans for dealing with such tragedies," Raila said.
About 6,000 cards have been sent to guests who are expected to make a house full at the KICC Plenary. There were plans to station TV sets outside for many others expected to attend the occasion, but without invitation cards allowing them into the Plenary.
"You must learn from your mistakes and limitations in the past. In 1997, I was just introducing myself to Kenyans. Ten years later, I have come of age," Raila told The Sunday Standard, as he explained the elaborate campaign plan he has laid out.
"In 1997, I was not known. My party was new and I was new to Kenyans. They kept referring to the party as 'a little known party'. It had no national reach," the MP said.
The invited guest is a list of who-is-who in Kenya that includes President Kibaki and his predecessor Mr Daniel arap Moi.
Invitations went out to all ambassadors and high commissioners, reputed sports personalities, business executives, religious leaders and professionals. Current and former MPs have also been invited.
Guests have arrived from all over
The Raila team said it sent invitations to friends from the region and overseas, some had arrived on Saturday.
Raila himself said guests have arrived from all over, including Europe and the US. The Lang'ata MP was silent on the proposals he would make at his launch. But his choice of a model Head of State who has had most influence on his thinking could give an indication of the programmes the MP is likely to propose, especially on the economic front.
Asked who his model president or Head of State has been, Raila said that "without thinking," he would pick former Prime Minister of Malaysia Mahathir Mohammad.
"Mahathir transformed Malaysia from a poor Third World economy, to a developed nation in just 20 years. He introduced far reaching reforms which have spurred economic growth to date," the MP said.
Raila said he admired the economic models of a number of other East Asian nations, including South Korea.
"There are other leaders in the Third World. But I think Malaysia and South Korea provide sound models for economic revival after years of decline. There are also a number of leaders in the West that have provided models. But we must remember that the problems of the developed States of the West are completely different from ours," the MP reiterated.
When he was the leader of Malaysia, Mahathir saw himself as the unofficial spokesman, for the developing world.
In an interview with Time magazine late last month, Mahathir said that Third World countries "have got nobody to stand up for them".
"They either owe money to banks or they are receiving aid ... So we have to wait for somebody. Today, the tendency is to be associated with the big people. The developing world wants to be nice to President Bush, to praise Prime Minister Tony Blair," he said.
Launch will run alongside related activities in other towns
Raila, on the other hand, said he admired the fact that in 20 years, Malaysia advanced in such a way that it ended up owing nobody money and did not ask for aid.
That development model, Raila said, is achievable in Kenya, and within a shorter time.
"The other country that fascinates me is South Korea and I believe the development models of these countries, can be replicated in Kenya," he explained.
Raila's wife, Ida Odinga, a strong advocate for women's empowerment, said she expects the MP to unveil an elaborate plan for the elevation of the women's lot. Ida also said she expects Raila to come up with a clear plan to lift people out of poverty.
"Poverty is real. You may ignore it until a fellow woman comes to your doorstep and says she has nothing to eat with her children. I know it because I meet such requests every day," she said.
She agreed that in 1997, Raila was not known and said it is time for him to run, after ten year of sharpening his leadership skills.
"I have not asked why, but I think Raila was introducing himself to Kenyans in 1997. The Raila people knew that time was Raila the detainee. It is 10 years since and he has had time to let people know who he really is. His ability to organise party affairs is also superior now," Ida said.
Raila joined the National Development Party on December 31, 1996, after he resigned as Ford-Kenya MP for Lang'ata. He contested the seat in a by-election three months later and won on NDP ticket.
The launch at KICC will run alongside related activities in other towns, where supporters will hold events to mark the day before tuning in to watch him present his vision on national television.
In Kisumu and Kisii, residents will hold launch activities before the Lang'ata MP takes the stand to announce his vision.
Most elaborate campaign plans he has ever laid out
Raila told The Sunday Standard that all the main independent TV stations and an array of FM radio stations would air the event live.
The Lang'ata MP said he would instantly reach as many Kenyans as the combined reach of the TV and radio stations can.
Despite the fact that his party, ODM-Kenya is yet to get a formula for picking its presidential candidate, Raila exuded confidence that he would get the ticket and is preparing for a presidential campaign of a life time.
He also agreed that it is the most elaborate campaign plans he has ever laid out, and explained why. Bomet MP Mr Nick Salat, who confirmed he had been invited, said he viewed the elaborate launch programme as a statement of resolve.
"In politics, nothing will be given to you on a silver platter. You have to create an impression that you are the man to beat. That is what Raila has done," Salat said.
"Raila is a seasoned politician. ODM-Kenya without Raila being the major driving force cannot cut. Let's just call a spade a spade. The ODM-Kenya aspirants should support Raila, he said.
Raila first ran for president in 1997, when he came third after Kanu's Moi and Democratic Party's Kibaki.
Raila said the elections slated for later this year would be completely different from the one of 2002. He said he was ready to face President Kibaki.
"In 2002, we had an incumbent President who was not running, but was fronting a successor. The incumbent was trying to transfer his popularity to his chosen successor. It did not work," he said.
"This year, we have an incumbent who wants to retain power. He can easily use the power of incumbency to perpetuate himself," Raila added.
ECK was a product of negotiations
He said there are signs that the President wants to use his incumbency to his advantage. In 2002, he said, the Electoral Commission was a product of negotiations. It was largely independent and neutral.
"Today, until we change the composition of the ECK, we have a commission consisting of the President's cronies and which cannot be relied on," Raila said.
"The election we are facing is going to be more challenging and more difficult than the one we had in 2002. Registration of voters is higher in areas that voted Banana than those that voted Orange in the referendum. People are not getting identity cards in Orange zones. But the Orange vote remains intact and it has expanded," he added.
Narok North MP Mr William ole Ntimama said he expected Raila to make a "strong case for a Majimbo system of government".
"Kenyans want devolution. I expect Raila to deal with that conclusively and convincingly. It is no longer just a political gimmick. Kenyans are genuinely tired of being ruled from one location," Ntimama said.
Mbita MP Mr Otieno Kajwang', who pursued a number of odd court cases as Raila's lawyer in the 1990s, said he expects the Lang'ata MP to make radical proposals that would make everyone access justice and get fair hearing quickly and cheaply.
Kajwang' said Raila understands "how crooked Kenya's justice system is". He recalled that when the multi-party Parliament took off in 1993 several people had petitions dating back to nomination period when thugs and policemen barred them from presenting their papers only to have their opponents declared unopposed winners.
He recalled that when the House first convened, the Speaker declined to swear in those whose election had been injunctioned by courts.
Initiated private prosecution of VP
But Kajwang' says soon after that he was in court, his client, Raila Odinga, his instructions; to declare the election of the Speaker null and void.
"I was instructed to file a case to challenge the election of the Speaker because people he had refused to swear-in participated in his election. We lost the case," Kajwang' said.
Around 1993, Kajwang' was back in court with Raila, who had initiated a private prosecution of then Vice President Prof George Saitoti over Goldenberg scandal.
As the Saitoti case was delaying in court, Kajwang' was back in court, with Raila as the client, this time to take on the Chief Justice himself. Their case against Chief Justice Majid Cockar was that he was holding office while past retirement age.
"The case was dismissed because the court found that Cockar had one more year to go. Exactly a year later, he retired. But we counted literally from the date of his birth and to date, I am convinced that he worked past retirement age," Kajwang' says.
Key lesson we learnt in all these cases was that Kenyan courts could never rule against the government.
The other was that pursuing cases of public interest could turn a lawyer into a pauper.
"It is double jeopardy because the government will then be very hostile to you. Parastatals withdraw from you. Your client may also not pay because he is pursuing the cases in public interest, an interest you share with him. Bottom-line, you become very poor. I expect Raila to streamline our justice system and because he has been its victim, I know he will do it," the MP said.
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