Gaffe-prone Amina spins another goof

In the early days of Jubilee Party’s reign, Ms Amina Mohamed was the face of what was considered an internationally isolated regime.

President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy had seized power when they were facing criminal charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) related to the 2007/08 post-election violence.

Having previously served at the United Nations, where she a deputy secretary-general, Ms Mohamed was appointed to the Foreign Affairs docket when the country’s image was battered by the ICC infamy, with the thinking that she could exploit her global connections to fix some things.

One cannot take the shine away from Ms Mohamed that it was during her stint in the docket that the ICC cases collapsed, starting with that facing President Kenyatta, which was dismissed in December 2014.

Lately, Kenya’s famed sporting brand, Safari Rally, has been readmitted to the World Rallying Championship circuit, triumphantly ending a campaign that has had many false starts since 2002.

Whether by coincidence or able leadership, this fate has coincided with Ms Mohamed’s stint at the Sports ministry.

But away from these small triumphs, Ms Mohamed has made a name at her various workstations in the Cabinet for her unending goofs, whether you want to call them poor judgment or sheer naivety.

In the Foreign Affairs docket, Ms Mohamed, the accomplished diplomat, had several run-ins with her then-Principal Secretary Monica Juma.

It is worth noting that it is Dr Juma who was elevated when Ms Mohamed was transferred to the Education docket.

Matters were not any rosier at Jogoo House A, her next workstation.

In another fete of naivety, Ms Mohamed found herself isolated from the powers that be when she openly appeared to challenge the government’s preparedness to roll out the Competency-Based Curriculum.

She had previously ruffled feathers when she unilaterally pushed for the lowering of the entry grades to teacher-training colleges.

For her troubles, she was transferred, nay, demoted, to the Sports ministry if the statures of the two ministries is anything to go by.

Matters have not been any better at the Sports ministry, considered one of those ministries where one can get away with virtually anything.

Come last Thursday and the gracious Kakamega-born lady was made to appear before MPs to update them on the status of the 11 modern stadiums promised by the Jubilee government in its 2013 pre-election manifesto.

In a case, not of naivety but sheer lack of understanding of the principle of collective responsibility, Ms Mohamed chose to shift blame to the National Treasury.

Ms Mohamed on Thursday accused the Treasury of historically underfunding the sports industry and in most cases refusing to release funds allocated to manage sports and sporting activities.

“We have always budgeted for our programmes, but oftentimes the Ministry of Sports gets less of what is captured in printed estimates. The question to pose at this juncture is why the Ministry never gets resources allocated in printed estimates,” she said.

But it was the case of the national women’s volleyball team and its travails in South Africa that exposed the diplomat’s soft underbelly and her inability to be counted upon when it matters.

The minister was not forthright on exactly what happened in South Africa.

In fact, she appeared not to be even aware that the team was in South Africa and for what assignment.

When asked to state the exact facilitation the ministry had extended the team, Ms Mohamed appeared out of her depth.

If she had been a footballer or a rugby player, a yellow card could have sufficed.