President William Ruto (right) and Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga at State House in Mombasa on February 24, 2025.
President William Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga have reportedly tentatively agreed to a working arrangement between the ruling Kenya Kwanza coalition and ODM. The arrangement will see the sharing of more executive positions, among others.
A source familiar with the talks said the two leaders also opened the possibility of "going together in 2027 polls depending on how things play out."
To address public discontent against the government, the two parties have also committed to economic reforms to address poverty and unemployment, particularly among the youth.
Also, the deal involves addressing transparency, accountability and impunity in government blamed for sowing public disaffection as well as compensation for victims of the 2023 anti-government protests that Mr Odinga led.
This emerged even as President Ruto made a bold political statement by choosing the Coast as his first region for a development tour following ODM leader Raila Odinga’s loss at the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship elections.
On Monday, the two held a closed-door meeting for the better part of the morning at the State House in Mombasa.
For many years, the Coast region has been Mr Odinga and ODM's stronghold.
Dr Ruto has planned a week-long tour of counties in the region where he is expected to inspect and launch development projects in a bid to stamp the authority of the broad-based government.
President William Ruto and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga at State House in Mombasa on February 24, 2025.
Their meeting came at a time when there were wrangles within the opposition party concerning continued support for the Kenya Kwanza government after Mr Odinga’s failure to secure the AUC chairmanship seat.
At the same time, former allies of Mr Odinga at the Azimio La Umoja One Kenya coalition led by Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka have also come out to declare that he should now join them.
Although Dr Ruto has been categorical about continued cooperation between the government and ODM even after the AUC loss, Mr Odinga stated that he will announce his next move in due course.
The former prime minister said that he would be consulting widely before making a public announcement on the way forward.
"I am back home and going to meet with my friends and supporters. I am going to consult widely on what is next going forward. In due course, we are going to announce the way forward.
“Today, we just came to this meeting to thank the president and his team for the support they have given me and also to thank Kenyans who supported me throughout the campaign period. And I just want to say, watch this space, I will be talking again," he said.
The two leaders said they had put the Addis Ababa episode behind them and were now concentrating on matters affecting the country.
Mr Odinga dismissed claims that Sh13 billion was spent on his campaign for the AUC position.
“I have seen billions being quoted, some say Sh13 billion went into the Raila campaign. I don’t know which world those guys live in. I don’t know whether they know what a billion means. A billion shillings to do what?” asked Mr Odinga The opposition chief clarified that only essential expenses, such as transport for campaign travels, were incurred but did not disclose the actual amount spent.
“We were not living luxuriously, we were eating whatever was given to us wherever we went. African leaders were very generous, they provided us with accommodation and so on. But the government gave what was required. The minister for foreign affairs was available 24/7 and the other government departments to make appointments for me to meet the leadership across the continent,” he said Mr Odinga termed his bid for the continental seat an eye-opener that provided an opportunity to understand Africa better and engage with leaders across the continent.
“We now have a clearer understanding of the challenges that face our continent. I had an opportunity to meet with over 40 presidents of African countries in their own capitals and talk to them not only about my candidature but also to listen to them and hear about the challenges they are facing as countries," he said.
He noted that many of the challenges facing African countries were similar and rooted in historical issues, particularly the neocolonial system that has persisted after political independence.
"If you listen to the talks, you see that the problems the countries are facing are very similar. You also get to realise that most of them are historical, rooted in the way the neocolonial system has continued to befall Africa after political independence," he stated.
Mr Odinga added that he viewed his bid as a win-win situation, stating that even if he lost, he would still have other engagements to focus on.
President William Ruto (left) and Raila Odinga at the African Union Commission headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, on February 15, 2025.
"I told those women who were praying for me at Bomas of Kenya that if we win in Addis Ababa, we will have succeeded, but if we lose, we will also have succeeded because we will have other jobs to do. We come back home and do other things, so we have succeeded and have now come back home to join Kenyans. I am very grateful to be back home," he said.
Odinga also thanked President Ruto for his unwavering support.
"I want to thank my brother, President Ruto, who stood by me. He never asked me to run; I announced that I was going to run for this AUC seat as chairman. He only came after I announced to say that he was supporting my candidature. And he did support my candidature, not just by word but by deeds. He put up the machinery to help the campaign for me," he said.
The former prime minister also thanked leaders from Africa who supported his bid, stating that some were even willing to halt the elections to prevent his opponent from securing the required two-thirds majority.
Support
"I want to thank those who stood with us to the last moment and voted. If we had wanted, we would have completely stopped the elections because we required two-thirds to be elected the Chair of the AUC, and these leaders were ready to go with us to the end. I also thank those who voted against us because, in doing so, they were exercising their rights. That is how democracy works. We are not bitter at all," he said.
President Ruto echoed Odinga’s sentiments, stating that the meeting was meant to bring closure to Raila’s candidature as a country for the AUC chair.
He said that Mr Odinga’s candidature for the seat was processed through the Cabinet, which decided to deploy support from the government, as has been done before, to support the opposition leader’s candidature.
“I am proud that Raila put forth a formidable, serious candidature across the African continent. He was available for all the appointments and made journeys by air and road to different capitals and cities to canvas for his candidature, bringing all Kenyans together," Ruto said.
He thanked everyone who contributed to the campaign and expressed gratitude that the election did not end in a stalemate.
"I wish to thank my brothers and friends across the continent for their show of solidarity and support. When it became necessary to avoid a stalemate where there would be no chair, they also made the patriotic decision to support whoever eventually won. As a continent, we are proud that we went through an election, and every candidate, including Kenya, was given an opportunity. Ultimately, we remain a united continent with an agenda 2063 that Kenya will continue to contribute to robustly," Ruto said.
Dr Ruto said that Mr Odinga represented Kenya well at the continent, was present, available and did what needed to be done.
Prosperity and transformation
He said that Kenya has previously supported candidates for the position before but noted that Mr Odinga was a fantastic candidate.
“It is a proud moment to receive you back home and to engage with you as we drive the development agenda of our country and nation-building exercise and as we broaden and widen our engagement towards achieving that which will bring equity, prosperity and transformation for our nation,” he said.
Dr Ruto has called on all political classes to come together and focus on developing programs and policies that will catapult Kenya to the next level.
“We need all hands on deck to be able to achieve this vision and mission. As an administration that is now broad-based, there is every reason for us to accelerate the momentum for the delivery of the things that will transform our nation. I must be grateful that the necessary political capital that is required to move transformative programs in our country now exists curtsey of the broad-based government,” he said Deputy President Kithure Kindiki emphasised the importance of collaboration in making Kenya great.
"Even if the activity we engaged in for the AUC seat did not bring us success, it has solidified Kenya’s unity and profiled Kenya well. Today, Africa knows that Kenya is a strong nation and has a big contribution to make to the success of Africa," Kindiki said.
President Ruto affirmed Kenya’s commitment to strengthening intra-African trade by investing in infrastructure and networks that facilitate economic growth.
He emphasised that the country will continue supporting energy transmission and generation to boost agro-processing and value addition across the continent while leveraging the vast opportunities for trade and investment in Africa.
bocharo@ke.nationmedia.com
