Yes, Joho and Mungaro counting the losses with Balala.

The road to political Siberia for Mvita MP Najib Mohamed Balala began when he dared criticize the political high priest of the Orange Democratic Party Prime Minister Raila Amolo Odinga by claiming that the party lacked internal democracy and stifled dissenting voices.

On top of that Balala went to bed with the sworn political enemies of the Prime Minister and especially the group allied to William Ruto and Uhuru Kenyatta.

For him it was not a matter of if but when he would find himself out. This would be confirmed by a show he did with K-24 dubbed “Face the Nation” in which it came out clear that the relationship between him and the Orange was damaged beyond repair. The forces allied to Baba worked round the clock to ensure that he was severely punished for daring the gods of the most popular party in Kenya.

So as Balala retreats to his cocoon to count his loses one by one, and to also strategize how he is going to rise from the ashes there are those who are busy toasting their win of having him out of the plum job of the tourism docket.

But he is not alone. The winners are also counting their losses big time. I am not sure what the youthful member of parliament for Kisauni Ali Hassan Joho who is a dedicated ODM altar boy is feeling right now. Joho if we were to borrow from Ngugi’s wa Thiong’os Wizard of the Crow combines both the ears and the eyes of the Prime Minister in the Coast province. Not only that, Joho is the man who defends the Prime Minister to the hilt and is also said to be a major financier of the party. He is also the force behind the loose coalition that is the Coast Parliamentary Group. Most of the members who do not subscribe to his theories and dance to his tune always find him out.

He is also the man who shoo shoes the Prime Minister whenever he is in town and going by images I have seen on the newspapers he is really a close man to RAO. It would have been an icing on his political cake were he to be rewarded with Balala’s Ministerial position having taken over from Balala when he declined to contest for the parties deputy organizing secretary during ODM elections few years ago.

I do not want to talk about the merits and demerits of Joho as a minister but he is surely a wounded lieutenant given the time, effort and money that he spends popularizing the party. One may probably argue that he has image issues which may prove to be baggage to the party and that he was unable to deliver the Matuga seat to ODM, but trust me, given his loyalty and hardwork, this is a man I would want to have in my corner all the time.

Another loser in the Coast is Malindi MP Gideon Mung’aro. Although Mung’aro has knowledge of tourism issues having worked in the sector himself, he failed to catch the eye of the Prime Minister in the reshuffle as he was sidestepped by little known Voi MP Dan Mwazo. There is not much one can write about Mung’aro really. He has not been his own man and has played second fiddle to politics that have been orchestrated by others.   Mung’aro   a blue eyed boy when he was the Mayor of Malindi was actually touted as being a frontrunner for the tourism docket but never made it even to be an Assistant Minister.

One may also want to say that another ODM diehard Changamwe MP Ramadhan Kajembe is another loser. Kajembe walks, dreams, drinks and eats ODM. In fact, he also proved himself during the burial of the late Environment Minister John Michuki and it was matter of time when he would be elevated. However, rather than be elevated he now has to work under another coast Minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere.  

So what does the reshuffle mean for RAO at the coast? If going by what I have heard in radio stations in Mombasa is anything to go by, then RAO has a lot of work cut out for him. In the first place there is a feeling that Balala was punished for being candid. That his sacking goes to confirm what others have said about RAO- that he has to have his way no matter what. There is also a feeling that Balala was a hardworking official who should have been let to continue marketing the country abroad. But still there are people who feel that by sidestepping Joho and Mung’aro, RAO instead of rewarding them instead slapped them hard on the face.

Someone needs to tell Baba you do not sack in an election year. In any case, he has created more enemies that he hoped to do by sending Balala down the flush drain. He should have borrowed from KIbaki who despite being having Mutula Kilonzo pricking his backside time and again decided to relegate him to a less plum docket where he can go deal with exam cheats.

That’s my take.