I have my candidate, says Kibaki

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The President who spoke in Mombasa during a peace forum for lawmakers says he knows what kind of a leader Kenyans want and that is the person he is backing/PPS

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jun 8 – President Mwai Kibaki on Friday disclosed that he has a preferred successor, even though he has not been seen openly campaigning for anyone.

The President who spoke in Mombasa during a peace forum for lawmakers says he knows what kind of a leader Kenyans want and that is the person he is backing.

“If you hear that I’m not campaigning for anything don’t thing that I don’t believe in anything, I know the kind of project that we want in Kenya and I know that it does not do anybody any good to preach a different thing,” he told the meeting which was attended by among others Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka.

He caused laughter when he said “don’t think I don’t believe in anything.” Curiously, the slogan for Uhuru Kenyatta’s The National Alliance party is ‘I believe’.

President Kibaki last month denied that he had endorsed Vice-President Kalonzo Musyoka as his successor after a series of contradictory messages.

Speaking in Machakos on his way to Kitui for a tree planting ceremony, the President appeared to vouch for Kalonzo. “It is your time now. I have worked with him for quite sometime now and know he is a capable leader. What are you waiting for now?’, the President said amid cheers from Machakos town residents.

More recently, there has been speculation that the President had developed a soft spot for Deputy Prime Minister Musalia Mudavadi who decamped from Raila Odinga’s ODM to the United Democratic Forum.

The UDF was formed last year by Professor Nick Wanjohi and other close Kibaki allies. Wanjohi is the private secretary to President Kibaki

During the Madaraka Day national celebration on June 1, Mudavadi was the one who welcomed the President to deliver the keynote speech.

On Thursday, Mudavadi represented the Head of State at a high level State function, the fifth world’s accreditation day celebrations at the KICC.

The recent series of high level briefs by Mudavadi only serve to amplify the notion that he is being groomed to inherit the reins of power once President Kibaki retires, a suggestion he has flatly dismissed.

Mudavadi dismissed as baseless claims that he was President Kibaki’s project saying the Head of State has the liberty to choose anyone to represent him at any function

Mudavadi, Uhuru Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto were among several MPs absent at the Conference.

LABAN WANAMBISI

LABAN WANAMBISI

Laban Wanambisi is a Parliamentary and Political reporter. He joined the Capital Newsteam in 2005. Since then, he has reported on many of the major news events over the years including his first major assignment covering the 2005 National Referendum on the Draft Constitution, and several other subsequent key national and international events.

  • Lavedith

    We have always known a kikuyu cannot vote for anybody else. Its Uhuru for president and Mudavadi for vice and Ruto as leader of Govnt in the house period.

    • Karisasi

      Then if that is what gonna happen I declare that majority Kenyans are psychos and should be nuked.
      How can a sane Kenyan vote for someone accused of crimes against humanity?.
      That is impossible I rather see our Coast split and leave peacefully rather than being lead by someone like Uhuru accused of mass killing and rape!!.

    • DanToro

      Ukweli kabisa….sioni vile msapere anaweza pigia kura mtu mwingine, lazima anamaanisha Onyatto Junior, ushaona lile picha walipigwa TNA akiwa St Mary’s wakati wa prize giving? Usiwahi amini msapere…

    • tsherry

      Are u a kikuyu yourself? why can’t we tolerate one another? when i vote i don’t vote as a Kikuyu, Luhya, or whatever tribe, i vote as a Kenyan citizen..lets outgrow our tribal notions and cocoons. I wish someone could tell the Kenyans to vote based on the aspirants’ integrity as opposed to ethnicity

  • Elijahnyangwara

     ”I know the kind of project that we want in Kenya”,Well the political leadership as known what is good for us for too long…this time though we want to make that choice……This project thing!

  • http://profile.yahoo.com/63E64SPXXLDTTSQDCCWMMHMXXU Matini

    Let him come up with his project he will be suprised.Kenyans already have there project and that is Raila,we will see which project will sail at the end.

    • Ngoma

      really? which Kenyans do you speak for? 

    • tsherry

      on whose behalf are u speaking? This is a democratic country, and democracy means that even the president can back whichever candidate he wants

  • Pratt

    Kenyans are being misled by idle propaganda merchants that never see things beyond tribal mirror. Brother Mudavadi is only a decoy sent to disorient these misfits. Why cant these fellows see the big picture? Conducting politics of smear campaign and outright hatred, wont take us anywhere at all. Merchants of deceit must realize that calling people “projects” wont wash this time round. And who said when you associated with yester year Kanu, you are not a good leader, or dont deserve to vie for the highest office in the land? Who said when you are associated with ever performing president Kibaki, you dont deserve to lead this country? Kenyans are truly being conned by do-nothing merchants of deceit! If Kanu was that bad, would the ever party-hopping prime minister been its secretary general? Would he have become a Kanu minister? We need to carefully re-examine some of these hate-spewing conmen. They never allow Kenyans to genuinely decide on anything. For they know any free choice would hardly favor them. Thats why we are being told that the election would be a two horse race. We are then not told why so when there so many candidates! Of course, thats a wicked attempt to restrict our choices. Democracy demands that all wananchi be afforded the freedom to choose. But those who believe in nothing but themselves, are ever pointing fingers for us. Democracy is about ideas not about bloated toxic tribalism marked murderous-range! Democracy is not about yelling abscenities. Its about telling the people what you can do for them. Democracy is not about casting aspersions on others, but selling of superior plausible ideas. Democracy is not about false political feats backed by empty fiction. Its about friendly competition of ideas. Democracy is not about selling mischief and falsehoods bordering on insanity. Its about telling the truth and truth alone. Democracy is not about creating enemty, but a pool of our ideas.    

  • Nyeri_governer

    I have my candidate, says Kibaki and that is Uhuru Kenyatta. TNA… Kibaki used their slogan I believe in TNA

  • Pratt

    Brother VP Kalonzo is the best candidate president Kibaki can ever have. First, the guy is clean and extremely faithful. He is also the kind of person who can keep this country united. He doesnt employ divisive politics like merchants of deceit. And if anything were to crop up in connection with ICC, Kalonzo, if history is anything go by, would provide a shield to our then retired president. He would easily use his diplomatic skills to make sure that no messy situation is created for us by international community. Brothers like Hon. Mudavadi, having spent eternity with merchants of deceit, would certainly crumble on face of sustained pressure. Needless to say Mudavadi cant be as protective as Kalonzo.  Brother Mudavadi was also dicreetly involved in propaganda that was meant to uproot “ever creeping vile weeds in Kakamega.” His hate against one was alomst at parity with his former forces in Odm. He can never be the best insurance for our guys. We need well known safe hands, not people whose friendly antics cant be proven. While brother Mudavadi on the surface looks pretty a safe bet, its obvious that he either failed to read his former bosses correctly and early enough, or he simply believed in their chemistry of hate. He is thus presenting himself as a moderate only to upstage and stun those who dont understand pretentious behaviour. Had he believed in unity for all Kenyans, he wont have stayed in Odm for so long. After all, Odm’s so called reform agenda is just another word for annihilating the Kikuyu. Thats why anything has failed come out of their empty songs of reform. Obviously, if indeed they were real reformers, other than hate mongers, 5 long long years wont have lapsed without any sign of those reforms. Reforms are only supposed to come through victimizing certain communities. Infact, firing them from their jobs right and left, would be dramatized as clean clear break with the past! It doesnt take a genius to know  that had there been genuine decent reforms in first place, they would have at least taken off by now. That only hate speeches and chest thumping don the  best part of these fellows, says it all. And one would wonder whether this same same stuff was the one brother Hon. Mudavadi was fed on during his long intership in his former party. The last time I chacked was being called a good student by merchants of deceit.

  • MUTHEE

    Do not vote for Uhuru. Voting for him means you the voter are partaking in his crimes against humanity and you will bring curses to you and your children’s children.