Raila clarifies his THREE meetings with Ruto
Raila Odinga says his three meetings with President William Ruto was a 'chance meeting' and nothing political
Raila Odinga says his three meetings with President William Ruto was a ‘chance meeting’ and nothing political.
Azimio leader Raila Odinga has said there was no Handshake talks between him and President William Ruto in their three meetings within 24 hours over the weekend.
On Tuesday, Raila referred to his encounters with President Ruto at the burial of Ms. Mukami Kimathi in Nyandarua, their subsequent encounters at Kasarani for the Kip Keino Classic on Saturday, and the Mashemeji derby at Nyayo Stadium on Sunday as “chance meetings” unrelated to the nation’s political situation.
The Kenya Kwanza administration has consistently attacked Mr. Odinga, alleging that his anti-government protests were an attempt to resume a similar arrangement with President Ruto. Mr. Odinga had signed the Handshake, a post-election agreement with former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Speaking on Tuesday in Nairobi, the Azimio leader claimed that during their three meetings with the President, they solely discussed football while in the VIP Lounge at Nyayo Stadium.
“I want to tell Rigathi Gachagua that we did not talk about anything other than football. For the record, we don’t want any handshake with the government and we have not asked for it. It was a chance meeting, I did not know he was coming to Kasarani. I was invited to the event and when I got there, I saw him (president) also arriving. Nothing was planned,” Mr Odinga said.
On their meeting at Nyayo Stadium during the derby between Gor Mahia and AFC Leopards, Mr Odinga said he only learnt that the President was going for the match while he was at Makadara on his way to stadium.
“I encountered a traffic jam at Makadara while on my way to Nyayo and when I asked, I was told that it was the President who was going to the stadium for the match. While there, we met at the lounge at half time and we only talked about football,” Mr Odinga said.
On the burial of Ms Mukami, Mr Odinga said it was a State burial and he had to attend when he met the President and they shook hands.
The meeting between the President and the former Prime Minister in the three events had set political tongues wagging that a political truce could be in the offing.
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This comes as Mr Odinga continued to pile pressure on the government over the Finance Bill, 2023 threatening to mobilise Kenyans to reject it if Kenya Kwanza uses its numerical strength to pass it in the National Assembly.
“If this Bill is railroaded through Parliament, Kenya Kwanza must prepare that we will have no option but to mobilise citizens around the country to fight for themselves. We will have no option but to mobilise all the social sectors and take all the necessary political actions to stop this blow and burden,” Mr Odinga said.
He said the coalition demands a major surgery to the Bill in the interest of the suffering people of Kenya.
“The Finance Bill 2023 unfairly punishes a diminishing middle class that is already suffering severe blows and can least afford to pay more taxes.
The most tangible result of this Bill will be the incorporation of more Kenyans into the ranks of the poor,” Mr Odinga said.
Mr Odinga also told members of the public to lobby their elected leaders to stand with them by rejecting the Bill in parliament.
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