THE HARROWING HAGUE HALLOWEEN!

The harsh reality has slowly but surely sank into the hearts of the entire nation. Our sitting president, Honorable Uhuru Kenyatta is awaiting the commencement of his trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague, in November. But is this the cup of tea that the nation envisaged in late 2008,when the then ICC Chief Prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo declared that he was to use the Kenyan case as an example that crimes against humanity have no place in the society? My crystal ball tells me, NO!

After the infamous Waki envelope that was handed to former United Nations Chief, Koffi Annan, notable efforts were made to establish a local tribunal to try the suspects and ensure that the cases did not end up in the corridors of The Hague, as is the case now. The Late Makueni senator and former Constitutional Affairs minister, Mutula Kilonzo, former Gichugu legislator, Martha Karua and Honorable Gitobu Imanyara, all saw their efforts viciously quashed at the floor of the 10^th House. At that time, the deliberate decibels of ‘Let us not be vague, let us go to The Hague’ reverberated across the entire country.  Most of the politicians argued that The Hague process was the only avenue through which victims of the 07-08 blood-letting would get justice.

Almost five years down the line, the harsh reality of The Hague process has set in and the same politicians, who had the golden chance to save the country and the suspects from trial at The Hague, are screaming loudest, with all manner of deliberate untruths and outright lies. The ICC has suddenly turned into a political axis, heel-bend on settling political scores, depending on which side of the political arena one has taken. To others, it is the deliberate and devil plan of the western powers to rule over Kenya. To others, it is our sovereignty that we are losing to the west! All manner of arguments rent the air. Rightfully so, it is country with a constitution that greatly safeguards the freedom of expression and opinion opinions, thus all opinions are correct and must be accommodated.

However, when we all soberly sit and look back, we must accept that the 10^th parliament and politicians failed to set up a local tribunal and hence invited The ICC into the country. So our sovereignty is not on trial. Had a local tribunal been set up, then our duly elected president and his deputy, alongside journalist, Joshua arap Sang’ would not be at the Hague. As a country, we must accept this failure and bemoan the fact that the parliament unanimously voted to take H.E Uhuru Kenyatta, his deputy Honorable William Ruto and Joshua arap Sang’ to The Hague. Our politicians failed, the parliament failed and the entire nation failed. Our politicians should stop pretending to mourn alongside the president and his deputy and instead swallow the bitter pill; that they failed in setting up a local tribunal that could have averted The Hague reality check.

The greatest regret is that our duly elected president and his deputy are facing trial in a foreign land. This is scenario that we could have avoided had we not done unnecessary politics. The Hague was sure to happen and our politicians should have known better.

It is not Uhuru Kenyatta on trial, but the duly elected head of Kenya is at The Hague.  It is not William Ruto on trial at The Hague, but it is the duly elected deputy president of the Republic of Kenya. This is the harsh reality that we must bemoan and accept as a nation.  Remember that, they have great constitutional responsibilities to dispense as the two most powerful men on the land.