{UAH} Pojim/WBK: The Kitany-Waiguru power-play tested - Politics | Daily Nation
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The Kitany-Waiguru power-play tested - Politics
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When Ms Marrianne Kitany appears before the anti-corruption commission on Monday, she may be asked to explain her relationship with Devolution Cabinet Secretary Anne Waiguru.
The anti-corruption war triggered by President Uhuru Kenyatta has exposed behind-the-scenes intrigues of a vicious fight for control and influence pitting two of Jubilee Coalition's most powerful women against each other.
While Ms Kitany, the Deputy President's Chief of Staff who has stepped aside, was the most powerful official in Mr William Ruto's camp, Ms Waiguru occupies a similar position in Mr Kenyatta's court, with many seeing her as the first among equals in the Cabinet.
Correspondence seen by Saturday Nation also appears to suggest that the two were mere proxies in a power struggle between their principals and that the consequences of their fallout could signal tough times ahead for the UhuRuto partnership.
Prof Karuti Kanyinga of the University of Nairobi's Institute of Development Studies said the fight against corruption had introduced new dimensions to the coalition, especially coming after the International Criminal Court bond which joined the principals at the hip weakened with the end of Mr Kenyatta's case.
"President Kenyatta's action on corruption is going to have consequences on politics. There might be an implosion and subsequent weakening and fragmentation of his coalition," Prof Kanyinga said.
So powerful was Ms Kitany that in October 2013, she wrote to Attorney-General Githu Muigai cautioning that the tender for the standard gauge railway had been mired with procurement issues and advised that the President should not launch it before the questions were cleared.
"We have reviewed the documentation and detected numerous anomalies in the tendering and documentation," the letter dated October 28, 2013 read.
It was copied to Transport CS Michael Kamau, President Kenyatta's Chief of Staff Joseph Kinyua and Public Procurement Oversight Authority Director-General Maurice Juma.
Analysts say Ms Kitany could not have written the letter without authority from her boss.
It was also at this time that Nandi Hills MP Alfred Keter, a Ruto ally, launched a noisy campaign against the project.
Mr Nduva Muli, then Kenya Railways managing director, wrote to China Road and Bridge Corporation, withdrawing the award letter and indicating that the project would be funded by a negotiated deal under a government-to government MoU.
Mr Kamau and Mr Muli, who became Transport Principal Secretary, have stepped aside over the railway but Ms Kitany also found herself in trouble for her war with Ms Waiguru.
She is alleged to have diverted public money amounting to Sh100 million to fund a bid by MPs to impeach the CS.
Interestingly, the letter, which triggered her troubles, is said to have been written to the Office of the President by the Devolution Ministry.
The President's Office forwarded the letter to the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission, which included the complaints in the List of Shame forwarded by the President to Parliament during his State of the Nation address two weeks ago.
The report says Ms Kitany diverted the money from the Legislative and Inter-Governmental Relations Office to mobilise MPs "in the abortive campaign in July 2014 to impeach Ms Waiguru."
A similar amount is alleged to have been spent on unnecessary office renovations.
The impeachment motion, sponsored by Igembe South MP Mithika Linturi, was dropped following the intervention of the President.
The letter was forwarded to anti-corruption commission on July 31, with the chairman's office confirming it received it the same day.
It alluded to Ms Kitany's influence. "She has continuously purported to exercise powers and making decisions that are not related to the role of Chief of Staff," the letter read. Ms Kitany did not pick up our calls or reply to our texts seeking her comments.
Yesterday, Mr Linturi said he did not know Ms Kitany then. "I did not know her and so it would not be right to say she was involved in the motion," the MP said.
He said the motion was prompted by MPs who felt that Ms Waiguru was very powerful. Mr Linturi's move came at a time of disquiet in the Rift Valley over the transfer of National Youth Service boss Kiplimo Rugut by Ms Waiguru.
Many United Republican Party leaders also felt that Ms Waiguru was overshadowing Mr Ruto.
Mr Ruto however, came to Ms Waiguru's defence.
"If you have questions about Rugut, ask me or the President not Waiguru. In any case, Rugut has not been sacked. He has been transferred," he said in Kericho as debate over the planned impeachment heated up.
Ms Kitany and Ms Waiguru were not strangers to each other before taking up their powerful positions.
A former ICT manager at Kenya Railways, Ms Kitany came into Mr Ruto's court through her role in the joint secretariat that harmonised the manifestos of URP and The National Alliance Party, ahead of the last election.
It was in this committee that she met Ms Waiguru who was working for TNA.
Ms Waiguru had worked with Mr Kenyatta when he was Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance in the Kibaki government.
The two were to work together again in another committee that drew the structure of the Jubilee administration.
The corruption purge now threatens this alliance.
A lawmaker from the Rift Valley told Saturday Nation Friday that some names in the corruption dossier were inserted by "some characters in State House to put a wedge between the President and his deputy."
"They thought that by naming some people close to the DP, they would divide them. The coalition is intact because of the incredible rapprochement and chemistry between Mr Kenyatta and Mr Ruto," the MP said. Elgeyo-Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen yesterday denied that there was power play, saying the President and his deputy were committed to eradicating corruption.
"Our detractors want to create situation where the DP is damned when he acts and doomed when he doesn't. He is now being accused of not coming to the aid of those named. If he did, he would be accused of condoning corruption," Mr Murkomen said.
Anti-corruption commission officials told Saturday Nation that they began investigations into the claims against Ms Kitany after receiving the confidential document from State House.
This appeared to lend credence to claims by some of Ruto's allies that the text, tone and detail of the list suggested it was authored by people with a political agenda.
Ms Kitany is also accused of harassing and intimidating members of staff at the Deputy President's office.
http://www.nation.co.ke/news/politics/The-Kitany-Waiguru-power-play-tested/-/1064/2682034/-/nrmmy3/-/index.html
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