Why petty propaganda won't win Wajir's gubernatorial case

As months turn to weeks and weeks to days in the run up to the supreme court's ruling on Wajir's gubernatorial case, a new trend has been noticed among a section of Wajir politicians and their followers. A trend of desperation and distorting facts. 

The tone and texture of everything has changed. Govenor Mohamed Abdi popularly known as Shuluq has turned the tables on his adversaries and seems to be in control as far as running the affairs of Wajir county is concerned, if the desperation on the other side is anything to go by. 

Even though Govenor Shuluq has been in and out of the courts for the last one year, his stewardship of the county has been remarkable. Unlike the previous administration that had a penchant for baseless PR, governor Shulug does his stuff without caring much about what the outside world says as long as Wajerians are satisfied. And satisfied they are. Look around. Ask around. Let petty propaganda and clan sycophancy not blind you. Smell the good aroma of the change sweeping across Wajir. 

What started as a cruise control for the former governor along the corridors of justice seem to have been too early to call. His team have realised this and to forestall a defeat at the courts, they are exhibiting acts that can only be described as desperate. They have now turned to petty propaganda and peddling outright lies - even on matters before the courts - like the drama we have been treated to last Sunday when a leading daily was bribed to publish a fake latter purporting to disown Govenor Shuluq's academic papers. But the public was too smart for such idiocy. It didn't take long for Wajir people and all concerned parties to figure out the pack of lies in that forged letter. 

By now you must have noticed that there are many lies, rumours and half truths that are paraded in the media and social media networks by team Jiir. Their level of desperation is just too much that they would go any length to win public sympathy - a public that cares less about their self inflicted tribulations.

Someone remind team Jiir that propaganda will not save the former governor. The SCORK will have the last word. Can't they just be patient enough to wait for the court verdict? It may silence them forever. The aftershock of that ruling may even last beyond 2022. 

Devolving the handshake: Time for Governor Mohamed Abdi and his nemesis to shake hands and pledge reconciliation?

After a year of acrimony, dirty politics, raw propaganda and court cases, many believe that it's time for the two wrangling factions of Wajir's political formation, Governor Mohamed Abdi and his rival ex governor Ahmed Jiir stand side by side, shake hands and pledge reconciliation. 

The region's political pundits argue that during the last one year, the county government of Wajir has known no political stability neither has its governor Amb Mohamed Abdi, popularly known as Shulug, been given the space to run the affairs of the county. Observers also say that there has been deliberate attempts by opponents to vilify and concoct stories to portray Governor Shulug and his administration as clueless, aloof and ineffective, the county progressive agenda notwithstanding. 

In this blog post, we independently tell you why it's important to expedite the handshake for the greater good of Wajir as suggested by elders and elected leaders.  

Propaganda from day one: The former governor's online battalion spared no effort to discredit, denounce and deconstruct Shuluq's government. They have religiously dedicated time to hunt like sneaky scavengers, bouncing on everything and anything. When they are on the hunt, they will call and squeal to one another, spreading propaganda and tagging each other on Facebook, sounding like cackling demons thus creating a propaganda machine - oiled by monies allegedly diverted from the public coffers, if the Auditor General's report is anything to go by - that turned out to be too much for Shulug and a mortal threat to his authority as the Governor of county 008.

 Of course constructive criticism is fine and allowed in any civilized society but what Shuluq's opponents have been engaging for the last one year is just beyond civilized politics. The handshake will bring these deadly and divisive political fights to an end, unify Wajir residents and enable all - opponents or otherwise- to participate in the development of the county.

Given a chance, the handshake can bring end to the vitriolic attacks between the rivals. No doubt that the handshake has the ability to appeal to Wajerians across clan lines — in a county where community and politics are inseparable — in a way that no court cases can do. 

Court cases: In this part of the world no one concedes electoral defeat if the number of election petitions filed at the courts are anything to go b
y. While the 2017 general election had its own fair share of madness and lack of respect for the rules of the game, to understand the Wajir scenario better, it's important that we rope in the 2013 gubernatorial election. Nomads have their own mode of resolving disputes no matter the magnitude. Politics is the norm rather than the exception. Shuluq was the main contender against the former governor in 2013 and chose not to seek legal redress despite the fact that there were irregularities and abnormalities committed against him during the 2013 elections. Reason being, immediately after the 2013 elections results were announced, a delegation of elders were sent to Amb Shuluq to convince him to give the then governor, Ahmed Jiir, an opportunity to govern. Governor Shuluq being the decent man he is, heeded the wazees' counsel and let it go knowing well that there is always another day to fight. And true to his words, that day did come sometime August 2017. To cut a long story short, Jiir was dismantled by the same forces that brought him to power in the first place. Why, one may ask but that is a story for another day. And months of court cases seem not to have been of much help. So one wonders why not the handshake and lower the political temperatures once and for all? In fact analysts of the region's politics believe the handshake may be of more benefit to team Jiir than to any other camp just like the current governor benefited from the 2013 unpublicized handshake that delivered Shulug the Ambassadorial post. We have seen what the devolved handshake has done for the counties of Mandera and Marsabit. It's important for Wajir to heed the handshake call being spearheaded by elders and influence paddlers. 

Moments after the Supreme Court allowed Wajir Governor to file new evidence as he fights to retain his seat, respected elders and elected leaders from Wajir county were quoted in the media saying they wanted the governor's case settled out of court. The elders argue that time and resources have been wasted on a petition that hasdivided the county down the middle. Wajir residents too say they are tired of a never ending case and want the current governor to be given the space to run the affairs of the county just like the previous governor was given the goodwill to manage the county. This, they say, will enable them benefit from the second phase of devolution. They also say five years is too short a period to agonize over an election loss and in any case Shuluq's new evidence - which he had no opportunity to present in previous trials - is believed to be earthshaking and may be a game changer. The elders insist that the handshake is good for the progress of the county and must be accepted by all unconditionally. 

Ineffective Communication team: Okay, it’s probably disingenuous to pretend that social media is still something nascent and unproven for NEP politics but Shuluq's opponents used social media to manipulate public opinion on matters Wajir county. Facebook has been turned into a battleground for dirty politics, promoting lies, misinformation and propaganda against the county government of the day. This could have been easily rebuked had Shulug team understand their role considering the progress the county government has made for the last one year - these developments have been dwarfed by social media propaganda. Recently the world bank in partnership with the county government of Wajir launched a multimillion livestock restocking project in the county, an initiative Governor Mohamed Abdi commended the World Bank for saying that the programme would alleviate poverty. Equally important to note is that Wajir County is the first county to launch a climate change fund. Everyone knows that Wajir, like many other arid and semi-arid regions, has been experiencing increasingly frequent and severe drought that have largely weakened the livelihoods and economy of the county and setting such a fund will definitely alleviate the problem. These among other noble initiatives undertaken by the county government are the kind of progress no one talks about much as they matter. Giving credit where it's due should not be a problem. 

It's so obvious that Shuluq's so called communications team is too down, clumsy and disorganized.

Now that the Supreme Court gave Governor Shuluq a chance to redeem himself, he should turn the tables and reorganize his communication team for effective communication, and put things into shape. Ni muhimu!