Bring Raila even closer for better 2027 prospects; Kiraitu to Ruto
Former Meru Governor Kiraitu Murungi is advising President William Ruto to tighten his relationship with former Prime Minister Raila Odinga if he hopes to get re-elected
Former Meru Governor Kiraitu Murungi is advising President William Ruto to tighten his relationship with former Prime Minister Raila Odinga if he hopes to get re-elected.
The veteran politician thinks the constituency that voted for the President in the last election was “shaky” and that he must explore new friends and alliances.
Observers have argued that the Mt Kenya political bloc was no longer intact for the President after the impeachment of Rigathi Gachagua as Deputy President late last year.
Gachagua is actively fomenting opposition against the President in the vote-rich region.
Speaking at his home in Nkubu, Meru county, on Sunday during in a wide-ranging interview with People Daily, Kiraitu said Ruto would have to recruit Raila into his defence in order to counter the Mt Kenya tide that is galvanising to vote him out of power in 2027.
“Ruto needs Raila to strengthen him. He is radical thinker and many people don’t know that,” Kiraitu said.
“The President must keep him close so he can help him replace the shaky Kikuyu votes with Luos, because Raila has a wider command in the Western and Luo communities.”
The Opposition leader, he added, will not only fill a political gap but also engineer economic transformation.
“Raila is a great thinker and I think Ruto also needs some fresh ideas which can bring economic changes in this country,” he said.
“I know Raila. I have worked with him and I know he can help the President bring positive changes if they work together.”
Though Raila might have lost some supporters after the Gen Z demos, Kiraitu insisted that the ODM leader still commands consequential support across the country.
President Ruto rallied forces across Africa around Odinga’s unsuccessful campaign for the African Union Commission chairmanship.
It has been widely argued that Raila, whose allies joined the Ruto Cabinet after last year’s deadly Gen-Z protests, could return a hand in the next election.
Several ODM politicians have voiced their support for Ruto’s re-election.
“Everybody can see their relationship so far is good, and remember if you follow the Raila political series, you will realise that he has served in every government whether formally or informally,” Kiraitu said.
“He was there with the late Arap Moi, the Mwai Kibaki Grand Coalition and recently with Uhuru Kenyatta after the ‘Handshake’.
“Raila is instrumental and any serious politician will need him. That is why Ruto must keep him for his economic and political survival.”
Raila can be a strong political pillar to any political formation, Kiraitu added but cautioned that his support for Ruto going forward may not be guaranteed unless what happens aligns with his political interests.
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“Democracy is a game of numbers and interests. Maybe Raila might stay in the ‘marriage’ or decide to go his own way,” he said.
“But it is too early to say that, but what we can all see is Ruto needs Raila in 2027, especially after the bitter falling-out with … Gachagua if he is to close the Mt Kenya gap.”
But Kiraitu said that Ruto might also “pull a surprise” in 2027.
“Ruto is a political genius. You may say ‘Ruto must go!’ And he might also declare that ‘Ruto must stay’,” he said.
“Since [his days as a university student], he understands Kenyans politics very well, so unless there is a serious political organisation [opposing him] or a drastic happening, he may pull a surprise and win a second term.”
He explained that politics was more than rhetoric.
The former minister noted that this is not the first time the Mt Kenya region is divided politically, saying it was worse in the 1990s but reunited in support of Mwai Kibaki in 2002.
“We join politics to bring transformative changes in the society, so if one manages to do this, then politics can be a permanent home, because what Kenyans need is development which bring changes to their lives and country as a whole,” he added.
He lauded President Ruto’s ‘board-based government’, saying it is the best in a democratic country.
Such a government, he said, can accommodate the interests of various groups, ethnic ones.
“The broad-based government will address the ethnic and community structures across the country,” he said.
Kenya has had such governments before, he added. “Even in Kibaki’s time, there was a grand coalition and Uhuru’s time after the ‘handshake” he said. “It is the best model because it brings peace and growth.”
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