After heeding Uhuru’s advice and meeting Ruto, Raila explained that he agreed to join forces with the Head of State, alluding to their previous working history.
Azimio la Umoja leader, Raila Odinga has revealed the details of the role played by former President Uhuru Kenyatta in setting up collaboration between himself and President William Ruto during the Gen Z revolution in Kenya.
Speaking on Tuesday, August 13 during the funeral of Mzee Chirchir Masit (the father to former IEBC commissioner Irene Masit), Raila stated that it was Uhuru who had suggested discussions that would lead to a dialogue aimed at addressing concerns raised by Kenya’s youth, particularly the Gen Z, following the recent anti-government demonstrations.
“When the country was burning, former President Kenyatta called me and asked me to reach out to President Ruto to find a solution to the issues being raised by Gen Zs. We talked and I told him my thoughts and how to deal with the situation,” Raila said.
Raila Odinga at the inauguration of President Paul Kagame at Amahoro Stadium in Kigali, Rwanda on August 11, 2024. /PCS
After heeding Uhuru’s advice and meeting Ruto, Raila explained that he agreed to join forces with the Head of State, alluding to their previous working history.
He recounted his tenure as the Prime Minister during the Grand Coalition government under the late Mwai Kibaki while Ruto was the Minister for Agriculture, adding that Uhuru and Prime CS Musalia Mudavadi were his deputies during that time.
“We said that we want a dialogue among Kenyans because the issues raised by Gen Z are problems that have affected our nation. We agreed that we should talk as Kenyans so that we find solutions to these problems,” he said.
“I talked to Ruto because he is my friend, I was with all of them. Mudavadi and Uhuru were my deputies while Ruto was the agriculture minister.”
Raila added that Uhuru warned of severe consequences if the chaos was allowed to continue, emphasizing the need to find a solution urgently.
However, he clarified that ODM had not joined the government as reported by a section of the media, adding that the President only requested him to help him pick leaders from the opposition to help him run the Kenya Kwanza and move the country forward.
“Ruto approached me, and I spoke to him openly because I don’t like hiding my issues. We had direct talks, but the media reported that we had already formed a handshake,” he said.
“I am not in government. We never agreed with Ruto that we should have a coalition government. He requested me to help him identify people from my side to serve in his administration. I did exactly that. I am confident we shall move forward as a nation.”
The remarks by the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Party leader come at a time when there has been widespread speculation about the nature of the relationship between the two political figures after key leaders in the opposition outfit were appointed to lucrative government dockets.
Raila’s comments suggest that the collaboration was more about stabilizing the nation rather than any formal political alliance.
President Ruto appointed Ali Hassan Joho as the Cabinet Secretary in the Mining, Blue Economy and Maritime Affairs Ministry, Wycliffe Oparanya to the MSMEs docket, John Mbadi to the Treasury and Opiyo Wandayi to the Ministry of Energy, all of whom held top positions in the ODM party.
Ruto on his part explained that he was creating a broad-based government to bring everybody on board despite their political affiliations.
