Raila Odinga has been cautioned by Baringo County youths not to work with President William Ruto.
The group of young people urged Edwin Sifuna, the secretary general of the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), to urge Raila not to strike a deal with Ruto in a video that Sifuna posted.
Ahead of the impending agreement between Raila and Ruto to establish a political alliance before the 2027 elections, the group of young people addressed.
“Tell Raila not to join Ruto,” the youths said as they posed for photos with Sifuna. Sifuna was one of the dignitaries that attended Baringo Senator William Cheptumo’s funeral on Saturday at Arap Cheptumo in Bartabwa, Baringo County.
After a brief pause, the Nairobi senator encouraged the young people to repeat their message, and they all agreed, saying, “We don’t want him to join Ruto.”
Among the dignitaries attending the funeral was President Ruto. Ruto is willing to give the former prime minister up to 50% of the Cabinet and more of the administration in order to win his support, according to Nation’s reporting.
According to information obtained by All.co.ke, Ruto and Raila worked out most of the agreement at their midweek meeting at State House Mombasa, and it may be made public as soon as possible.
Sources claim that Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, Leader of Majority Kimani Ichung’wah, and his Minority counterpart Junet Mohamed were among the figures present when the planned agreement was made.
Raila has promised a major announcement after spending the better part of two days in consultative meetings in his home regions of Nyanza and Western.
He started holding town hall meetings to persuade his supporters that it was currently best for the country to cooperate with and support Ruto’s administration.
Since returning from their unsuccessful campaign to become chair of the African Union Commission (AUC), the two leaders have appeared to be following the same script. This is true even though some ODM members have said that Raila might be on the 2027 ticket.
“We close ranks and focus on what we can do for Kenya,” Ruto stated. To fulfill this purpose and realize this vision, we must have everyone working together.”
“We are available to help the continent of Africa, but more importantly, we are also available for Kenya,” Raila responded, reaffirming his willingness to help.
All signs point to Raila’s willingness to cooperate with Ruto, a coalition that would provide him authority similar to that which he enjoyed in the 2008 coalition administration.
In Ruto’s administration, Raila already has a number of Cabinet Secretaries, including former top ODM leaders John Mbadi (National Treasury and Economic Planning), Hassan Joho (Mining and Blue Economy), Wycliffe Oparanya (Cooperatives and MMSMEs), Beatrice Askul Moe (East African Community), and Opiyo Wandayi (Energy and Petroleum).
