They are at it again, polishing up another “supremo” to sell to the masses like he’s some kind of political messiah. This time it’s George Natembeya. The pundits are working overtime, claiming his profile is “bolstered” by the popularity of the Kenya Kwanza government. Popularity? In which Kenya? Certainly not the one where we are paying through the nose for fuel and watching our payslips shrink faster than a cheap shirt in a Nairobi downpour. Calling a politician a “stand-out” in this climate is like complimenting the cleanest rat in a sewer.
The narrative is being carefully curated for 2027, as if we haven’t seen this movie a dozen times before. They want us to believe that Natembeya is the fresh face Western Kenya has been waiting for, a man who will finally unite the “mulembe” nation. But let’s be real: in the high-stakes game of Kenyan politics, a “rising star” is just someone whose turn it is to hold the collection bag. These titles - supremo, kingpin, lion - are just labels slapped onto the same old wine bottles.
It’s hilarious how they credit his rise to the success of the current administration. If you look closely at the ground in Trans Nzoia or anywhere else in the former Western Province, the “political prominence” they speak of doesn’t translate to cheaper unga or better hospitals. It’s all theatre. While they debate who will be the regional boss, the common mwananchi is still stuck in the mud, wondering if the next tax hike will be the one that finally breaks their back.
This whole circus reminds me of the grim reality of our political landscape. We are constantly told to pick a side, to cheer for a new hero, while the underlying machinery remains unchanged and predatory. As noted in the piece The Vultures Are Fed and the Rest of Us Are for Sale, the elites are always eating well regardless of who wears the crown. Natembeya is simply the latest vulture being groomed for the feast.
The 2027 General Election is still years away, yet the propaganda machine is already in high gear because they need to keep us distracted. If we are busy arguing about whether Natembeya can outmaneuver the old guards, we won’t notice how little has actually changed. He’s being positioned as a “leading figure” not because he has a revolutionary plan for the economy, but because he fits the current strategic needs of the powers that be.
Spare me the “supremo” talk. In Nairobi, we know that today’s kingpin is tomorrow’s scapegoat. Whether it’s Natembeya or any other career politician, the script remains the same: a lot of noise, a lot of dust, and absolutely nothing for the person standing at the bus stop in the rain. We don’t need another supremo; we need a break from the endless campaigning that serves no one but the people on the billboards.