Political analyst Ambrose Weda now says that President Uhuru Kenyatta's extension of Chief of Defence Forces General Samson Mwathethe's term could have been politically motivated.
Uhuru on Monday gave General Mwathethe an additional year of service after four years at the helm of the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF).
Weda now says that though the move obviously had security reasons, it also has something to do with the well being of Uhuru as an individual and as a politician.
He stated that the plan could be to safeguard his position at the helm of the government and prevent the possible time wastage likely to follow as the new one settles in his position.
"The post comes with both security and political weight. Uhuru does not want ups and downs in the remainder of his term and would rather complete it with a familiar person. He knows that he might bring someone else and end up in the streets in the next few weeks," he said.
Weda was speaking on KBC English Service's The Big Conversation show on Wednesday morning where he noted that such situations have previously landed some African rulers in trouble.
"This is a very serious thing. The likes of Bashir (former Sudan President) and Robert Mugabe (former Zimbabwean President) fired theirs and ended up being uprooted from power," he added.
Mwathethe's term extension came despite dictates that one in that capacity can only serve a single term of four years.