Fred Matiang’i hires Canadian lobbying firm for 2027 presidency
Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Matiang’i hires a Canadian lobbying firm for the 2027 presidency
Former Interior Cabinet Secretary Matiang’i hires a Canadian lobbying firm for the 2027 presidency.
Fred Matiang’i seems to be seriously and quietly considering running for president in 2027, as he has hired a Montreal-based Canadian lobbying firm for $250,000 to garner international support.
According to a report by The Africa Report, an agreement signed on 13 July 2024, a lobbying firm Dickens and Madson will lobby the executive and/or legislative branches of the governments of powerful nations including the US, UK, Japan, Kenya, and any other mutually agreed upon country or countries, and international organizations on Fred Matiang’i’s behalf.
The firm will also provide other services “to assist in devising and executing policies for the beneficial development and stability of your political goals and to assist you in attaining the Office of the President of the Republic of Kenya.”
The former powerful and ‘no-nonsense’ minister in former President Uhuru Kenyatta’s regime—between 2013 and 2022—has kept a low profile after leaving office and has not publicly declared his interest in running for president.
However, there has been speculation that he is preparing to bid for the highest office.
During his time in office as interior minister, he was highly praised by Kenyans as a capable and effective leader due to his efforts to enhance national security, which reduced terrorism threats from the Somali-based Al Shabaab terrorist group. Al Shabaab had been crossing into Kenya and committing attacks such as the Westgate shopping mall shooting in September 2013 in Nairobi.
Dickens and Madson has caused some controversies in the past. In 2021, it was forced to drop a $2m contract with Myanmar’s ruling junta to defend the 1 February military coup in the southeast Asian country, after failing to secure approval from US and Canadian authorities.
Two years earlier, the firm signed a $6m deal to seek government funds and diplomatic recognition for Sudanese General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemeti, whose forces have been accused of massacring protesters in Khartoum. The deal, reported by The Globe and Mail, includes “striving to obtain funding and equipment for the Sudanese military”.
The lobbying also sought “to assist the devising and execution of policies for the beneficial development of Hemeti’s political aims”.
Now the head of the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), an independent military force waging Sudan’s later war against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF), Hemeti has been accused by Human Rights Watch of committing grave crimes against civilians in Darfur and other parts of Sudan.
Nairobi-based political and policy analyst Edwin Kegoli says despite external support being crucial for Kenyan presidential contenders due to Kenya’s strategic position in Africa, with significant foreign interests in security, politics, and the economy, home support will be the most important asset for Matiang’i if he decides to run for president.
“Kenyans will have the final say over his ambition, not foreign powers as 2027 is not far. He should seek home support first,” he tells The Africa Report.
Kegoli adds that the recent political realignment in the Kenyan political space—after Ruto and Raila struck a political deal to work together in government—might be the greatest challenge for Matiang’i. “He should not hide for too long. It’s time he tells Kenyans about his presidential ambition.”
In Matiang’i’s home region of Nyamira, his compatriots praised his tenure as minister. Bosire Nyanga’u, a political activist from the region, tells The Africa Report that the ex-minister’s belief in constitutional order resonates with Western powers, which will favour his quest for support.
“Matiang’i is lucky because the majority of Kenyans have lost favour with Ruto. Western countries stand with the people, not an individual,” Nyanga’u says, adding that his timing to seek international lobbying is perfect.
Matiang’i’s supporters portray him as a strong, forthright character, and claim he is incorruptible. They recall when he introduced measures to curb rampant exam cheating during his tenure as education minister between 2015 and 2018.
In Uhuru’s first term as president, Matiang’i was entrusted to lead the Ministry of information, communication, and Technology, where he oversaw the ambitious migration from analog to digital TV broadcasting despite resistance from private media owners.
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During the recent anti-Ruto protests that began in June, youthful protesters used their social media platforms to endorse him as their preferred candidate in the 2027 polls.
Douglas Wanyama, a university student who participated in the anti-government protests, vows to support Matiang’i if he decides to run against Ruto in 2027.
“We need Matiang’i as our president in 2027,” he says, praising his character, conviction, and commitment to stand up for what is right.
However, Matiang’i’s leadership at the security docket was put to the test after the contested 2017 polls, as he was tasked with stabilising Kenya amid deadly protests and chaos. Before the political truce in March 2018, he came under harsh criticism from the opposition for banning protests and was accused of ordering the police to use excessive force against demonstrators.
At that time, he outlawed the opposition pressure wing, the National Resistance Movement (NRM), led by lawyer and activist Miguna Miguna, which had sworn in Raila as the ‘people’s president’. Matiang’i labelled the group a criminal organisation.
At the tail end of Uhuru’s tenure, in 2021, he elevated Matiang’i’s functions and appointed him to chair the committee of all cabinet ministers, a move seen to undermine the authority of Ruto, the then Deputy President, who was busy on the campaign trail leading up to the 2022 polls.
In February 2023, following Ruto’s rise to the presidency, Matiang’i found himself in trouble with the new administration. His home in Nairobi was raided by the police.
The head of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, Amin Mohamed, claimed that the former interior minister had stage-managed a siege at his home.
Matiang’i’s lawyers dismissed that claim and said his life was in danger. After that incident, the vocal Matiang’i has not been seen in public, following a reported truce reached between him and the Ruto government through elders from his Kisii community.
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