President William Ruto is rushing against time to solve the diplomatic standoff against three countries threatening to taint his tenure - Sahrawi, India and Pakistani.
With barely two months in office, the Head of State is already in a diplomatic quagmire over the murder of two Indian nationals and a Pakistani journalist.
Speaking to Kenyans.co.ke, foreign affairs analyst John Gachie, cautioned that the world leaders are watching to see how Ruto will address the situation to restore their confidence and safety in Kenya.
Besides their safety, Gachie noted that Ruto's decision is key to restoring investors' confidence in the country's through the law enforcement institutions.
Social Development Consultant and political analyst Nafula Kisiang’ani echoed Gachie's sentiments, explaining that foreign countries are watching to see if Ruto's Government will adopt new strategies to solve diplomatic tiffs.
Death of Two Indians
President Ruto was forced to disband the Special Service unit (SSU) attached to the office of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) over the abduction of two Indian nationals.
Preliminary reports from the police Internal Affairs Unit (IAU) placed four cops at the crime scene. IAU accused the cops from the disbanded unit of kidnapping and assassinating the two Indians together with their driver.
Gachie stated that Ruto needs to reach out to the Indian government with a detailed report detailing how the case has been handled to avert any foreign standoff.
"The issue involving two Indians may be considered as foul play, so the government needs to address it with a lot of caution," he stated.
Nafula, on the other hand, opined, "The whole world is watching. If it is handled casually, it will taint our image not only in diplomatic relations but also through guests coming into the country."
The matter is still in court awaiting its verdict.
Pakistani Journalist
Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif was allegedly shot dead in a case of mistaken identity, according to a statement issued by the National Police Service on Monday, October 4.
His controversial death raised many questions, with Pakistan's government calling on Ruto to expedite investigations into Sharif's death.
"Just had a telephone call with Kenyan President William Ruto about the tragic death of Arshad Sharif in Kenya. I requested him to ensure fair and transparent investigations into the shocking incident," Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif wrote.
Commenting on the issue, political analysts Gachie and Nafula maintained that Ruto should have had direct talks with the Pakistani ambassador to express his regrets.
"On the issue of the Pakistani journalist, the police stated it was a case of mistaken identity, so then Kenya ought to write to Pakistani High Commissioner here and apologise. Also, the country needs to use proper diplomatic channels to address those issues," Gachie told Kenyans.co.ke.
Ruto's Sahrawi Gaffe
Just a day after taking his oath of office, the commander made a controversial statement announcing Kenya's decision to rescind the recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR) in favour of autonomy offered by Morocco.
He later deleted the tweet, maintaining that Kenya respects Sahrawi's sovereignty.
According to Gachie, that was a big blunder from the head of state. He defied diplomatic traditions and conventions.
"Diplomacy is based on traditions and protocols, it also has conventions and treaties. So the one on Sahwari was a serious blunder. Diplomacy is very structured, you may not like me but you cannot just wake up and say you don't like me."
Tiff with Uganda
President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni apologised to Kenya and further expressed commitment to protect the country's diplomacy after his son Muhoozi Kainerugaba threatened to capture Nairobi.
"It wouldn't take us, my army and me, two weeks to capture Nairobi," he tweeted.
Museveni further expressed goodwill by deploying Uganda's ambassador to meet with Kenya's counterpart and even further invited Ruto to Uganda's independent celebrations.
The analyst argued that Ruto could borrow a leaf from Museveni to address some of the diplomatic issues.
At the same, they added that his strategy must uphold the independence and ability of Kenya's institutions to protect both its locals and foreigners.
