Few Kenyan politicians experienced the dramatic highs and lows of power quite like former Cabinet minister John Joseph Kamotho, popularly known as J.J. Kamotho.
His political career was marked by an extraordinary rise, a humiliating fall, a remarkable comeback and years of controversy as one of the most vocal defenders of President Daniel arap Moi and the ruling KANU party.
Born in 1942 in Murang’a, Kamotho entered politics after working as a lecturer at the Kenya Institute of Administration.
He won the Kangema parliamentary seat in 1979, beginning a political journey that would eventually take him into the Cabinet and the upper ranks of KANU.
As Minister for Higher Education, Kamotho was involved in important developments in Kenya’s education sector. The recommendations of the Mackay Commission during this period helped pave the way for the establishment of Moi University and contributed to the introduction of the 8-4-4 education system.
But his political fortunes changed dramatically in the early 1980s.
Kamotho was caught up in the political fallout surrounding former Attorney General Charles Njonjo, whose relationship with Moi had collapsed amid accusations that he was plotting against the President. Kamotho lost his Kangema seat in the 1983 elections to John Michuki and suddenly found himself outside the political establishment.
His fall from Cabinet minister to political outsider was dramatic. Accounts of the period describe Kamotho selling groceries from a kiosk in Nairobi as he struggled to rebuild his fortunes.
Yet Kamotho was not finished.
In 1987, he managed to re-establish contact with Moi during a presidential visit to Nyandarua. The encounter marked the beginning of his political resurrection. He gradually regained the confidence of the President and returned to Parliament through the newly created Mathioya constituency.
His comeback was followed by appointments to government, including Assistant Minister and later Minister for Transport and Communications.
In 1989, Kamotho reached one of the most influential positions of his career when he became KANU Secretary General. From there, he emerged as one of Moi’s most aggressive political defenders during an increasingly turbulent period.
Kamotho became famous for his blunt remarks and uncompromising defence of KANU. His statement that the ruling party had never promised “zero tolerance” on corruption became one of his most controversial political quotations.
He also became closely associated with the slogan “KANU ni baba na mama”, reinforcing his reputation as one of the party’s most loyal politicians.
The return of multiparty politics, however, exposed the limits of KANU’s dominance. Kamotho lost his parliamentary seat in the 1992 elections but was nominated back to Parliament by Moi and appointed to the Cabinet.
He continued serving in senior government positions, including Education, Trade, Environment and Local Government.
His final major political battle came during KANU’s succession struggles. When Raila Odinga’s NDP merged with KANU in 2001, Raila replaced Kamotho as Secretary General. Kamotho remained sceptical of the alliance and warned that the political arrangement would eventually collapse.
His prediction proved accurate, but by then KANU was already facing a formidable opposition challenge.
Kamotho later moved towards the opposition as the 2002 elections approached, when KANU eventually lost power to Mwai Kibaki’s NARC coalition.
J.J. Kamotho died in South Africa on December 6, 2014, aged 72.
His legacy remains complicated. To supporters, he was a political survivor who repeatedly rebuilt himself after defeat. To critics, he represented the uncompromising politics of the Moi era.
But above all, Kamotho demonstrated one enduring feature of Kenyan politics: political fortunes can change overnight, but determined politicians can sometimes find their way back to the centre of power.