Listen Suleiman Rashid Shakombo was a totally unknown entity in Likoni before he entered the political arena in 1997. He left the Provincial Administration and, backed by an unfamiliar party, unseated Khalif Salim Mwavumo who was from the more familiar Forum for the Restoration of Democracy-Kenya (FORD-Kenya) party that five years earlier in 1992 had […]
Listen Newton Wanjala Kulundu, the medic-turned-politician, was easy to underestimate. The Member of Parliament (MP) for Lurambi, a constituency carved out of the then larger Kakamega District (now Kakamega County) at independence, had a somewhat laboured manner of speech that underlined humble beginnings and rural schooling. It wouldn’t be a misnomer to claim that Kulundu […]
Listen Peter Soita Shitanda epitomized what it meant to be a Cabinet Minister in President Mwai Kibaki’s government. Like his boss, he was nearly obsessive with his work and knew the ins and outs, the hits and misses and most importantly, the buttons to constantly keep under the pressure of his thumb. And, like the […]
Listen Moses Masika Wetangula joined President Mwai Kibaki’s Cabinet in 2008 as Minister for Foreign Affairs. Deputising him at the ministry were Richard Onyonka as Assistant Minister and Mwangi Thuita as Permanent Secretary. Before he became a Minister, replacing Raphael Tuju, he was the Assistant Minister for five years – from June 2003 to January […]
Listen Just like the young David felled Goliath with just five stones, to the disbelief of onlookers, so was a modern-day ‘David’ from Kimilili determined to fell a giant of his own; not with five stones, but with tsibili tsibili, the two-finger multiparty salute. His name was Mukhisa Kituyi. Born and bred in western Kenya’s […]
Listen In formal circles he is know as Professor Samson Kegengo Ongeri, EGH, M.P., but he has always gone by the less formal ‘Sam.’ Most know him simply as Sam Ongeri and might be surprised to hear that ‘Sam’ in his case is short for Samson, rather than the more common ‘Samuel.’ It is refreshing […]
Listen A political player par excellence, Chirau Ali Mwakwere was one of the most colourful and humorous personalities in President Mwai Kibaki’s administration. The politician from Kwale County in the coastal region was known to tickle his listeners, including the President, to the point of tears through his dramatic oratory. Beyond his moving power of […]
Listen If a poll were taken among Kenyans about what President Mwai Kibaki’s greatest legacy is, what would come out on top? Free primary education? Road infrastructure development? Economic growth? Maybe all of them as one inseparable package. But think again: There is a critical mass of the Kenyan population that believes Kibaki’s greatest legacy […]
Listen Raila Amolo Odinga held two different portfolios in President Mwai Kibaki’s Cabinet. First, between 2003 and 2005, he served as the Minister for Roads, Public Works and Housing. He then found himself out of the Cabinet, before he returned in 2007, this time as the Prime Minister of the Republic of Kenya. There is […]
Listen When he recounts President Mwai Kibaki’s leadership style, Paul Nyongesa Otuoma paints the picture of an impresario of unrivalled brilliance. The former Funyula Member of Parliament (MP) who served in three ministerial dockets in Kibaki’s administration is, however, quick to note that the President’s well-coordinated government had an unfortunate interlude in 2008 after a […]