By Gilbert Okenya
If you think that, in his current flurry of political activities, W. S. Ruto is engaged in early campaigns for his 2022 Presidential bid, then you got it all wrong.
Only a fool can begin fully fledged campaigns 5 years to the polls date and Ruto can be accused of all other things but not foolishness.
He knows very well that early campaigns face a stark reality of burning out too early, even for the most indefatigable players, before the elections are anywhere nearby.
You know what happens when you dance yourself lame before the main dance comes.
He also understands the huge risk of giving your political enemies all the time in the world to plot and strategize against you before the next elections arrive.
So, why is Ruto suddenly campaigning, while poaching (read buying) opposition leaders as if 2022 is next week?
His is a two-pronged strategy in an intricate game of wits. First, he is trying to give credence to the preposterous narrative doing the rounds that the current assault against corruption is a ploy to stop him from becoming president in 2022.
Two. He hopes that the flurry of political activities and noise might eventually drown the loud calls for speedy arrests and prosecution of the big fish behind the large-scale theft of public funds, in the most recent mega corruption scandals to hit the country.
The thing is, Ruto understands very well that the latest purge against corruption will eventually end at his doorstep. You and I know too well that there is no way any genuine fight against grand corruption in Kenya can leave the chief hustler unscathed.
So, the more Kenyans believe that there are evil forces out there trying to derail the “poor” son of a peasant’s chances of becoming president in 2022, the bigger his scapegoat when anti-corruption czars come knocking at his door.
Besides, the more sycophants he has in the name of easily bought Kenyan MPs – who happen to specialize in political prostitution – the more mouths he has to defend him politically once the right time comes.
I repeat; the hustler is not currently campaigning for 2022. He is simply using politics to defend himself. Even his body language, lately, is that of a beleaguered and tired man.
Does Uhuru have the balls to go for the jugular of the corruption dragon in Kenya? It will be interesting to watch how this pans out in the near future.
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