ODM leader Raila Odinga on Tuesday defended his decision to enter a cooperation agreement with President William Ruto, revealing that it was the Head of State who reached out to him.
Mr Odinga said his decision to team up with the President would enable him offer solutions to the challenges facing the country. He said that “you can only correct things from inside, and not by making noise from outside”.
He made the disclosure during the burial of Mr Kimani Waiyaki in Muthiga, Kiambu County, even as he raised issue with challenges posed by the universal healthcare programme.
“Many people are making a lot of noise here and there that I went to Ruto; that Raila has joined Ruto and has abandoned us. I did not go to Ruto, it is Ruto who came to me,” said Mr Odinga.
“My position on national issues has not changed. In all my life, I have always stood for the liberation and welfare of the people. You can recall that in 2023 we went out to the streets to fight against the high cost of living. Kenyans said the cost of living was becoming unbearable,” he said.
Mr Odinga raised concern over the ineffectiveness of the Social Health Authority (SHA), amid billions of shillings of unpaid medical bills for patients due to a system outage.
‘’I have told Ruto that SHA has a problem and it must be corrected. The taxes being imposed on Kenyans are also very high especially on the housing project,’’ Mr Odinga said.
‘’These things cannot be corrected when you are out, you must go inside and tell them what to do. And you must place people there to address the problems.”
The former Prime Minister has been facing a public backlash following his deal with Dr Ruto on Friday. On Sunday, he was heckled in Kisii County, in what has lifted the lid on the political risk and gamble of working with President Ruto, whose administration is facing hostility over unfulfilled promises and unpopular policies.
By teaming up with the President, Mr Odinga risks carrying the baggage of incumbency, handing him a portion of blame for failures of Kenya Kwanza administration, which swept to power on lofty promises of creating jobs to millions of unemployed youths and priorotising the needs of low-income earners, among other pre-election promises, but which have largely remained unfulfilled.
Mr Odinga has in the past accused the administration of introducing additional taxes that have resulted in a reduced take-home pay for salaried Kenyans. The Housing Levy, that has seen payslips shrink further, has also remained unpopular among Kenyans.
With the cooperation, Mr Odinga is likely to be lumped together with President Ruto over the unfulfilled promises as well as some of the policies that have continued to hurt the common mwananchi.
The decision has a potential of making the opposition chief lose some of his support bases — regions that have traditionally backed him over his credentials and perceived desire for a better country.
“It feels very bad to see H.E. Raila Amollo Odinga being heckled by the public in Nyanza. The heckling was a public manifestation of the bitterness against the Ruto administration and whatever it stands for,” said Kitui Senator Enoch Wambua, an ally of Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka.
Mr Wambua described the pact with the President as a poisoned chalice, saying a majority of Kenyans are bitter with the regime. He said the association has only served to damage Mr Odinga’s national political base.
“Politically speaking, Raila is carrying Ruto’s monkey. This is very unfair for a man who is the embodiment of the fight for the expansion of our democratic space. But you know President Ruto got what he wanted; a public appearance with Raila and a declaration that the two were pursuing a common goal.
“With that, the President will go to town with his head held high that he has the blessings of Baba to govern this country in the manner he wants,” said the senator.
