PROFILE: Musalia Mudavadi - From MP at 29 years to Kenya's third-most senior State officer

President William Ruto named his Cabinet on Tuesday, with ANC leader Musalia Mudavadi being appointed Prime Cabinet Secretary.

Mudavadi will be the most senior officer after the President and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. 

At 62, Mudavadi becomes one of the longest-serving politicians to join President Ruto’s  Cabinet. For a man who was pulled into politics at the young age of 29 following the death of his father Moses Mudavadi, Mudavadi’s has been a journey of mixed fortunes having lost two major elections that redefined his political career.

This is a man who took a gamble in backing Ruto, and it has paid off, giving his political career a lifelin.

Mudavadi was born on 21st September 1960 to Hannah Mudavadi and Moses Mudamba, a man who would in independent Kenya become a member of parliament and minister in the then President Daniel Moi government.

Mudavadi studied Bachelor of Arts in Land economics graduating in 1984.

Five years later, Mudavadi’s father died, leaving the Sabatia parliamentary seat in Vihiga, which was then in Kakamega district, open. Mudavadi ran for the seat unopposed winning the by-election. He defended the seat in 1992 and the 1997 General Elections successfully but lost in 2002.

 After a five-year break, Mudavadi resumed his winning ways becoming MP for Sabatia between 2008 and 2013.

 In the 8th parliament, Musalia served as the leader of government business between 1998 and 1999.

 During his tenure as Sabatia MP under Moi, Mudavadi served as minister in different dockets. First in the Supplies and Marketing ministry, then Finance, Agriculture and finally as Minister of Transport and Communication.

 And when Moi’s Vice President George Saitoti resigned and ditched KANU in the months to the 2002 general election, Moi picked Mudavadi to deputise him in the home stretch.

Mudavadi became the shortest serving VP for 61 days. During the 2002 presidential election, Mudavadi fashioned himself as Uhuru Kenyatta’s possible vice president were they to beat Kibaki, which they didn’t.

 Following the 2007/2008 post-election violence, Mudavadi, who had backed Raila Odinga’s presidential bid, was part of the Kofi-Annan-led Serena talks. Following the formation of a grand coalition government, Mudavadi was named Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Government.

During his political career, Mudavadi has been a member of at least five political parties and three coalitions. He started off as the KANU chair, Kakamega branch, then national KANU vice chair, and when he lost the Sabatia seat, he moved to the Odinga-led Liberal Democratic party.

Mudavadi then co-founded the Orange Democratic Movement after a successful campaign against President Kibaki’s 2005 draft constitution; a move that offered him a bounce back.

In 2012, in the run-up to the 2013 General Election, Mudavadi fell out with Odinga on the picking of ODM’s presidential flag bearer. He ditched the party in April 2012 and joined the United Democratic Front, UDF. He later left UDF for Amani National Congress in 2015.

Mudavadi was involved in the formation of Amani coalition in 2013, which supported his presidential bid in which he finished third behind Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga. He later joined hands with Odinga to form the National Super Alliance (NASA), the political vehicle to the 2017 General Election.

NASA however lost the election leading to a fallout that culminated in NASA’s dissolution in 2021.

Mudavadi momentarily worked with Ford Kenya’s Moses Wetangula, KANU’s Gideon Moi and Wiper’s Kalonzo Musyoka under One Kenya Alliance, a movement that was dissolved before formation. Mudavadi and Wetangula left OKA to join hands with Ruto as founders of the Kenya Kwanza Alliance.

Mudavadi’s presidential ambitions have taken him full circle from backing Uhuru to Odinga and eventually staging a run for himself in 2013. In 2022 Mudavadi chose to work with Ruto after years of associating with Kenyatta and the One Kenya Alliance.

For a man who has served in government for a combined 18 years and been in cabinet every time he was in parliament, Mudavadi has had a share of corruption allegations. He was first accused of involvement in the Ksh.27 billion Goldenberg scandal of the early 1990s under Moi. He was appointed finance minister in 1993 and has spent his life since then distancing himself from claims of involvement. Mudavadi was found not culpable by the Bosire Commission probing the scandal.

 As he served as DPM and Local Government Minister, Mudavadi was accused of involvement in a cemetery land scandal that was purchased at close to Ksh.300 million despite its value being more than ten times cheaper. He was however found not culpable by the High Court in 2016.

During former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s second and final term, Mudavadi fashioned himself as the sobre voice on the state of the economy. Should he be cleared by Parliament, Mudavadi will get a chance to advise or implement some of his proposals on turning the economy around in what ends some form of political cold that lasted close to a decade.