Page 6 - THE RHINO Issue 002

05
MARAGA:
“THE KAMIKAZE FROM NYAMIRA”
And we say this because Maraga’s rulings have had the po- tential of taking Kenya to the path of unimaginable crisis. Every opportunity he has had to summon some wisdom and chart the sensible path, he has acted with juvenile discre- tion. From insane demands of S500 Mercedes Benz to not being recognized on national holidays, his is an exercise in indulging his narcissistic fetishes.
Why do we say this?
When Justice Maraga annulled the 2017 Presidential elec- tion, he said- “The greatness of a nation lies in its fidelity to its constitution and the strict adherence to the rule of law and above all the fear of God”. And based on this po- litical statement, he annulled a presidential election. Well, he made history for being the first Chief justice to annul a presidential election in Africa. The effect of that ruling on the Kenyan economy was huge.
In just 126 days Kenya lost nearly Shs.1 trillion. That’s about 10% of our GDP. The Nairobi Stock exchange record- ed loses of up to Shs.130 Billion in a matter of minutes after his ruling. Whatever collateral damage there was, was fair game, at least from Maraga’s perspective.
Fast forward to September 21 st 2020, Maraga did it again. In a 10 page advisory to President Uhuru Kenyatta, he asked him to dissolve Parliament for failing to pass the 2/3 rd gender rule. This time round, his choice of words, were sadistic. He said: “Let us endure pain if only to remind our- selves, as a country, that choices, and particularly choices on constitutional obligations have consequences”.
Now lets picture this. If Uhuru Kenyatta dissolves parlia- ment, which he probably will, we will definitely enter a con- stitutional crisis. And this is because of numerous reasons. One, Maraga could ask all 6 elections, of President, Gov- ernors, Senators, Women reps, MPs and MCAs, to be held again on the same day. Who will approve budgets for this if parliament will not be there? How will IEBC carry out an entire election election with just 3 commissioners, and without a substantive CEO? And won’t they all need parlia- mentary vetting?
But that’s not really the problem. The bigger problem is what will happen to Kenya in the face of another election cycle? Will we lose another 10% of our GDP? Are we ready to go into a deeper crisis after what COVID has done to us?
And finally, are we ready to expereince a cycle of height- ened political tensions just because the CJ with a “Hachimi- ki” can’t see the storm Kenya is headed for?
God forbid!
BY KEVIN MAINA
OUR COLUMNIST
Kevin is a Political Economist and Doctoral Student at the Swiss Management Centre (SMC), Zurich, Switzerland. He is also an Associate Fellow and
a Political commentator at the Fort hall School of Government.
Chief Justice David Kenani Maraga is lover of the old British judge’s wigs. The wigs are part of England’s old for- mal ways of judicial culture. But they mean much more. In a richer sense they are an emblem of anonymity, an attempt to distance the wearer from personal involvement and a way to visually draw on the supremacy of the law.
Chief Justice David Kenani Maraga is lover of the old British judge’s wigs. The wigs are part of England’s old for- mal ways of judicial culture. But they
mean much more. In a richer sense they are an emblem of anonymity, an attempt to distance the wearer from person- al involvement and a way to visually draw on the suprem- acy of the law.
You see, in 1941 during Pearl harbor, Japanese-Kamikaze pilots, before undertaking their suicide missions wore a robe around their head known as the “Hachimaki”. This Jap- anese headband is usually made of red or white
cloth, typically featuring a design of kanji at the front. Kan- ji is one of the three Japanese writing systems.
During war Kamikaze pilots would wear a “hachimaki” with the inscription of “Kamikaze” written in kanji, right before flying to crashing their planes on American Warships. Being a kamikaze meant sacrificing oneself for his country. It was the greatest contribution anyone could ever give.
With that said, I think there are more deserving persons in Kenya that deserve to have the title Kamikaze than the chief justice. Our men in uniform for instance, deserve it more.
But if we were to replace the old English wig on Maraga’s head, we would give him a “Hachimaki”. And this is because Maraga doesn’t intend dying for Kenya, he probably wants to die with Kenya.
THE RHINO
Speaking Facts to Stupidity