November last year, Raila Odinga kicked off a campaign telling his dangerously over-zealous supporters that Mwai Kibaki's government was intent on rigging the December elections. He talked of some rigging clerks being trained at Anniversary Towers' (fourteenth floor) by an imaginary man he assigned the name ‘Mr. Chege". A few weeks later, he stormed the Ngong Hills hotel claiming to have received a tip-off from an aide of his that ballot papers were being filled in there. On the Election Day itself, he stormed the Electoral Commission's offices claiming that his name was not on the Lang'ata Constituency voter register. All these little sideshows had two things in common; one, they were all proved to be unfounded and two, all the allegations were made in the presence of the press, under flashing lights and into microphone booms.
All these cleverly calculated theatrics were to tune the minds of his excitable supporters just right, so that when defeat eventually came, they would have in their crania 'sound reasons' for doing what perhaps comes to them most naturally - going on the rampage. I am not in any way suggesting that ODM members do not believe the election was stolen and are engaging in violence for the sake it, no. I know they believe the election was rigged because they had been all set and prepared for it. The truth of the matter is that, with or without rigging the only outcome that would have saved Kenya from this violence was a victory for Raila Odinga. That is how much Raila Odinga likes violence, and his history stretching way back to the coup attempt he so glibly boasts about in his biography affirms just that.
But there is something else, besides violence that Raila Odinga appears keen to adopt; a false sense of importance. Displaying pictures taken with Barrack Obama to the press, claiming before the world that Barrack is his cousin are some of the more dramatic and vicariously humiliating scenes we have been subjected to.
Last year Raila likened himself to former South African President Nelson Mandela and believe it or not he also said he was like the Christ. This weekend he was in church once again calling himself Jesus Christ. He considers Kalonzo Musyoka a Judas Iscariot who cannot chair a session where "Jesus and his ‘pentagon' disciples are contributors". If you cannot attend a meeting chaired by the Vice President, then whose meeting can you attend? Since when did Kalonzo, the second longest serving elected Member of Parliament after the president become a disciple of Raila Odinga's and therefore in refusing to follow his every footstep a betrayer?
The ODM MP really needs to improve himself, to stop being that tyrant who cannot contemplate that others have wills of their own, that they are individuals with autonomous desires, with their constituencies that they serve, and outside of his control. Raila must now stop protecting his sense of omnipotence from the fear and vulnerability which surely rest at the heart of his compensatory delusions. He should start acknowledging others, and respecting them before he can himself command any such acknowledgement and respect. He has to respect authority. Calling ECK Commissioners "a few clerks seated at KICC" is not smart, it is not witty. It is ridiculous.
On Tuesday, during the election of the National Assembly Speaker, Mwai Kibaki reportedly did not speak to Raila. After the session, Raila does what he knows best---Rush to ‘The Standard'. He said that the President didn't even "greet him because he lacked the courage to do so". Who between Mwai Kibaki and Raila Odinga should be striving to shake the other's hand? It reminds me of a little story Dr. Justin Frank gives in his "Bush on the couch". Frank talks about this little niece of his who was once in a hotel lobby where President Ronald Reagan was staying. The President picked up the little girl for the cameras and then put her down. Her mother asked her whether she knew who that was. She answered; "Yes, but how did he know who I was?" Now that is what I call an extreme form of self-love and importance that Raila Odinga is thriving on.
Mr. Raila there were so many other Members of Parliament whom the President did not talk to. Why should you try to make it a big deal? Who do you think you are, Mr. Raila?
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