ICT Cabinet Secretary, Joe Mucheru has sparked a debate after he stated that there is a protocol dictating how many times heads of state can visit the same country.
Mucheru was responding to reports that East African Presidents, Samia Suluhu of Tanzania, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni and Rwanda’s Paul Kagame did not show solidarity to Kenya by failing to attend the funeral service of the late President Mwai Kibaki.
However, John Gachie and Prof Israel Kodiaga, renowned foreign affairs experts, leading political analysts, futurists and strategists refuted an existence of such a protocol in Kenyan Laws.
The two experts spoke to Kenyans.co.ke on Friday, April 29 as the State Funeral for Kibaki was underway.
"They (the Presidents) were here in Kenya twice in the last few weeks. There is a protocol on how many times heads of state can visit the same country. Don't judge. Let's give our late President an honourable sendoff. Thank you," Mucheru stated.
Gachie first noted that the ceremony is a celebration rather than a national function that required diplomatic schedules and bookings.
He explained that the Presidents are invited as a show of good faith and relations between Kenya and her neighbours.
“This is a more solemn issue and you do not plan when a President would die. Protocols do not apply in such circumstances as to when signing trade agreements. In fact, this is a non-issue to warrant being addressed as it's more of a matter of showing support to each other.
Prof Israel Kodiaga, the Director - Business development and research at Southern Delta International in South Africa, concurred with Gachie, underlining that the country is mourning an icon, a veteran politician and one of Africa’s respected presidents.
Kibaki, he stated, served in the first two governments before he assumed power and was on the international scene for decades.
“He served with Museveni and Kagame, save for Suluhu and was integral in the formation of the East African Community (EAC). Much of what is celebrated in East Africa today can be traced back to Kibaki’s time.
“All presidents owe, in the spirit of the federation, ought to stand with their sister country Kenya. There is nothing worse than not attending an event of such magnitude and mourning is part of the African culture,” he told Kenyans.co.ke.
Delegation and Mourning Periods
notably, that the East African Presidents sent their representatives to Kibaki’s State Funeral.
Among the delegates were Rwanda Prime Minister Edouard Ngirente, Vice Presidents Philip Mpango of Tanzania, and Uganda’s Jessica Alupo and Constantino Chiwenga of Zimbabwe.
South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa and his South Sudan counterpart Salva Kiir and former Malawi President Joyce Banda personally attended the State Funeral.
Prof Kodiaga stated that sending a representative or an official speech is enough for recognition.
All the East African Presidents also eulogised Kibaki, with Tanzania’s Suluhu announcing two days of mourning with the national flag flown at half-mast. Same as South Sudan which announced a three-day mourning.
“They have given Kibaki the honour he deserves. A head of state may be busy and we cannot purport to explain why they miss a foreign engagement,” the foreign affairs expert clarified.
Gachie, an international relations expert concurred and noted that Uganda’s Museveni is currently hosting Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi on a three-day official visit.
Did ICT CS Mucheru Rush to Address the Issue?
Both Gachie and Kodiaga agree on this. Gachie opined that Mucheru should not be dragged into clarifying such reports as they are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“He should desist from sideshows. This was a non-issue worth being dragged into,” Gachie told Kenyans.co.ke.
“Mucheru may have been trying - in my honest opinion - to spin the issue around. Although I highly doubt that. Nonetheless, his statement was out of context,” Kodiaga added.
Existence of a Protocol as Claimed by CS Mucheru
Gachie refuted the existence of such a protocol while Kodiaga noted that the same is not enshrined in the 2010 Constitution.
“If it existed, then Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta would have been stopped from travelling abroad. He has flown out of the country several times in his two terms.
“I believe such guidelines are referred to in matters of budget expenditure and audits. The US has such protocols but those do not apply here in Kenya," Israel Kodiaga argued.
