The National Alliance (TNA) Party of Kenya has thrown a rotten egg on its own face by the verdicts of the party’s disciplinary committee on legislators Senator Joy Adhiambo Gwendo and MPs Moses Kuria and Priscilla Nyokabi. The committee threw away the complaints against Nyokabi and Kuria but decided to suspend Gwendo, in a move that has led to public outcry of how political parties continue to malign women, at least that is the larger perception.
Kenyans feel and rightly so that the difference between the verdict of Moses Kuria who is alleged to have incited his constituents to violence and Joy Gwendo who is alleged to have disrespected the part is as stark as day and night.
Kuria’s allegations were dismissed on account that the shared video was edited hence could not be relied upon. Such a decision would only make sense if TNA made it public the video expert who was consulted to interrogate it and found the video edited. Further, a linguist who saw the edited video and stated that indeed there was some worthy and useful context that preceded the hate speech assertion must suffice. On the face of it, regardless of what he stated before, or the bit that was edited out, he has a hate speech case to answer.
For Joy Gwendo, it is alleged that she was disrespectful to the party, she was disrespectful to the Kisumu branch office and she was associating herself with the opposition (ODM) all these which brought the name of the party to disrepute. The complainant in her case is TNA Party chairman Hon. Johnson Sakaja. This decision has certainly and obviously taken a gender angle.
Senator Joy Gwendo suspended by TNA Disciplinary Committee. Long live KANU. ‘Selective breeding in humanity’ @NationFMKe @TheStarKenya
— Ndung’u Wainaina (@NdunguWainaina) August 28, 2015
I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. The clear gender bias, prejudice hasn’t escaped my generation. It is unfortunate. — Yvonne Khamati (@YvonneKhamati) August 28, 2015
The saddest thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies.
— Yvonne Khamati (@YvonneKhamati) August 28, 2015
Johnson Sakaja took to Twitter to allay fears that the decision by the disciplinary committee is final.
I have received the decisions of the TNA Disciplinary Cmtte. The decisions are not final and shall be reviewed to ensure justice & fairness. — Sakaja Johnson (@SakajaJohnson) August 28, 2015
All cases that were finalized over the past two weeks will be reviewed as per the Constitution of The Party.
— Sakaja Johnson (@SakajaJohnson) August 28, 2015
Kenyans will be waiting with bated breadth to see how the reviews are done. While not much would be expected, the least would be not to rubber stamp the decision to suspend Senator Gwendo. Moses Kuria is likely to be let go. At a media forum early in the year when he had just taken over as the Gatundu South MP, he explained that he was put in charge, during the 2013 election, of voter registration, technically saying he won TNA and the Jubilee coalition power. Such a person is quite valued, regardless of his negative rants which cast aspersions on the party’s image. But as the review is being awaited, there are those who feel the decision on Senator Gwendo is prudent.
Loyalty and character over everything…btw what value was Joy Gwendo adding to TNA? — Nyeri Businessman™ (@LordGichohi) August 29, 2015
Hahahahaha now Joy Gwendo’s disloyalty to the party shouldn’t be punished ati because she is luo in a ‘kikuyu party’ gerarara here
— Nyeri Businessman™ (@LordGichohi) August 29, 2015
Cord discussing about Joy Gwendo yet they dont belong to TNA thats a party issue and not a national issue — Muli (@muliulemmoja) August 29, 2015
Joy Gwendo may be a victim of circumstances but the propaganda propagated by non-objective media & CORD bloggers on Kuria is equally crap!
— Jeff Mwazzak (@Jmwazzak) August 29, 2015
Atleast Joy Gwendo was given a chance to be heard…Magerer Langat was humiliated and had to be rescued by a police landcruiser…lol — Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 29, 2015
What value has Joy Gwendo* added in TNA? ZERO….what do you do to people of no value to you? CUT THEM OFF.
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 28, 2015
Joy Gwendo wa plucked from RMS to join TNA under very unclear circumstances…questions were raised then by those who knew her well
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 28, 2015
Joy Gwendo was a mole from day 1…..that has been an open secret to those who know her well…let us not sugar coat anything here
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 28, 2015
Infact TNA took too long to weed out Joy Gwendo….they should have done it in 2013 when these issues were first raised with evidence
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 28, 2015
I totally disagree with TNA letting Moses Kuria off but I fully support the action on Gwendo…I am on record about her since 2013
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 28, 2015
There are those who took a middle ground
CORD really milking this Sen. Gwendo situation….TNA messed big time….LOOOL — Laibuta Esq. (@Olez) August 28, 2015
All parties actually…I am yet to see a party with internal democracy in Kenya https://t.co/2TUfY0220P
— Intellect Mogul (@GicheruGicheru) August 29, 2015
What is sure is that the rotten egg on TNA’s face will remain smelly, even if it is washed away. How will in fact the review, in whom the complaint is the party chairperson, who will also preside over the review, rule against his own complain? Unless he declines to preside over it (he can still have a voice on the decision) or Kenyans are looking at a good play book; recommend suspension, then review process revokes it and the party is seen as democratic.
But what is most unfortunate is that the voter who should ideally make an informed decision from such, will not, will soon forget about it and move to support it at the time of calling.
For Senator Gwendo, if the review process rubber stamps the decision of the disciplinary committee, it is expected that she will head to the court to safeguard her seat. This will be a long process, which may end closer to the General Elections and the suspension be meaningless.
