ICC Kenya Cases Latest Development and the George Saitoti Presidency Factor
February 22 | Posted by David James | Intelligence News
Post Kibaki era is conspicuously absent from political analysts commonplace media hodgepodge simply for one reason, the era is like an abyss, fathomless, and shrouded by mystery and uncertainty.
The intelligence community is worried neither the politicians including the Kikuyu protégé has Uhuru Kenyatta nor the ethno-religiously followed Raila Odinga had political leadership expediency enough to keep the Kibaki era consistent.
The need to keep the pace of development, military capacity, and regional economic balance is dire. However, the worry of the NSIS is how to sell the only man with both political expediency and the political leadership skill set to keep socio-economic development and political leadership tempo, Professor George Saitoti.
Critical analysis on the political, education, and leadership background of professor George Saitoti sheds light on the underlying factors that makes him the best placed for the presidency of the republic.
Saitoti’s has predominantly featured in politics, serving President Moi and President Kibaki with loyalty. During Moi’s presidency, Saitoti served as Minister of Finance (1983–1988), the Vice President (May 1989 – Dec 1997) the Minister for Planning and National Development (December 1997 – April 1999) and Vice President (April 1999 – 30 August 2002).
During the Kibaki regime Saitoti was the Minister of Education (January 2003 – November 2005) the Minister of Education (7 December 2005 – 13 February 2006), the Minister of Education (November 2006 – January 2008), the Minister of State for Provincial Administration and Internal Security (January 2008 – present).
He also served as the Acting Minister for Foreign Affairs (October 2010 – August 2011) Saitoti was also executive chairman of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund and served as president of the African, Caribbean and Pacific Group of States where he was instrumental in helping negotiate a partnership agreement between the ACP and the European Union (EU).
Professor Saitoti wrote and published the book “The Challenges of Economic and Institutional Reforms in Africa: Contemporary Perspectives on Developing Societies,” in 2002.
He is a mathematician and economist who has a PHD in Algebraic topology. During his college days, Saitoti excelled at the high jump. He was very good at it that he was ranking as one of the best in New England during his undergraduate at Brandeis University.
Saitoti credits the Wien International Scholarship Program and Brandeis with much of his personal and professional success. George Saitoti is very wealthy.
His properties and estate range from plantations and real estate. Some includes Sulmac flowers, and very expensive property in Kileleshwa in Nairobi and Nyali Mombasa. Saitoti has also amassed a lot of wealth during his tenure as a minister and politician for 3-decades.
The topology expert has the decade long experience in both politics and political leadership having served two masters. His tenure as a vice president during the Moi regime is one of his secret weapons.
He has the inside information about every top-political contender including Raila, Uhuru, Ruto, and Kenyatta.
In fact, all of them worked under him when he was vice president besides them being turncoats who helped President Moi quash his presidential bids. President Kibaki for excelling and maintaining good political leadership loves Saitoti.
President Kibaki told off his wife Lucy when she sought the sacking of Professor Saitoti. As a minister of internal security, Saitoti has excelled in improving internal security, restructuring the police force, and preempting armed community conflicts. This gives him influence on ethno-economic issues and ethnic diversity of the country.
The diversity of Kenyan political culture is embedded on socio-economic parity and the almost mysterious protectionist hierarchies that must be succeeded to keep the lid on socio-politico padora tightly closed.
Saitoti is ruthless, intelligent, informed, and patient. President Moi secret service police tried to poison him and he foiled the operation yet kept on working with his nemesis.
ICC Buck Stops With Saitoti
When ICC issued orders requiring the ICC suspects Uhuru Kenyatta, William Ruto, Francis Muthaura, and Joshua Sang declare their wealth besides remain in the country, Professor George Saitoti took responsibility by writing to the ICC and providing bond guarantee for the four.
This means, it is Professor Saitoti who has the final authority on whether Uhuru, Ruto, and others should be locked at the ICC should the prosecutor provide enough reasons to arrest these suspects.
Saitoti may opt to play the cards close to his chest and if the appeals chamber finds no reason for the appeals by the Ocampo 4 hence committing the 4 to full trial, he will have the best bargaining chip to presidency.
Saitoti like Kibaki has worked in the government for decades, sharing, brushing, and falling out with politicians making him experienced and quite cognizant of political wheel-dealing.
Saitoti’s relation with the president, scholars and intellects like Peter Kagwanja may help him understand the dynamic political situation. This can be through reaching out to associates of these point men, gather relevant socio-political intelligence on how Saitoti fares on the ground then create a political strategy.
Saitoti has not thumped his chest and claimed a share of his success in the political and leadership life such as the securing of Israeli help to train KDF and Police on counter terrorism. The success of such projects has been heaped on Prime Minister Raila Odinga instead of Saitoti who played the central role ins such negotiations. Like Kibaki, his style of leadership is hands-off.
His political leadership skills, success in the education docket which was president Kibaki’s personal project, and track record in sustainable development qualifies him to take over from president Kibaki.
However, Saitoti needs more than an intelligence report to make headlines, become loved by the electorate, and become tops at all opinion polls. The professor must identify a strategic plan that can convince, provide insight about his capacity, political leadership skill-set, experience, and ability to achieve principal objectives consistently.
This will require a think tank that can provide a broad spectrum of strategies aimed at selling the Professor, eliminating political competition impartially, besides impartially rally Kenyans to shun current political leadership.
The buck stops with Saitoti though. He will have to solve his problem and start making political inroads, with ‘Post Kibaki’ era and the ICC suspects as his trump cards.
