My Car Was Shot 10 Times- Raila On Attempt To Kill Him
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader further alleged that he was forced to take cover under his car seats to avoid being impacted by...
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Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition party leader Raila Odinga on Friday, March 31 claimed that rogue police officers fired at his car 10 times from the initial seven he alleged the previous day in an assassination attempt.
Raila was speaking to Voice of America (VoA) while counting up to 10 bullet holes riddled on the vehicle he was travelling in during the Azimio anti-government protests on Thursday, March 30 in an alleged attempt by the officers to take him out.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader further alleged that he was forced to take cover under his car seats to avoid being impacted by the barrage of bullets.
Raila's convoy teargassed during the Azimio protests on March 30, 2023 at Pipeline, Nairobi. /FILE
"Yesterday when we were travelling, they started firing. When they were shooting, I was seated on the other side of the car and they shot.
"I had to take cover, and went on the seats to keep myself away from the bullets that were hitting the car," Raila recounted.
Raila also revealed that the shooters had categorically targeted the area inside the bulletproof vehicle in which he was sitting, noting that the suspected killers knew where he was sitting at the back of the car.
"You could see that these were aimed at the passenger side where I was sitting. We initially thought that they were firing in the air, but later discovered that they were aiming directly at me," Raila stated.
The former prime minister also claimed that the suspected assassins were under specific orders from top government officials to eliminate him.
“I don't think any police officer could aim to shoot and assassinate politicians without being commanded from the very top,” Odinga noted, as he showed journalists dents and bullet holes on his armoured vehicle. Speaking to the media in Karen on March 30 during an address that was not televised live, Raila hit out at the President William Ruto-led government for trying to lead the country back to the darkness that composed the colonial period while faulting the police for stifling the protests.
He yet again accused foreign nations of turning a blind eye to police brutality during the opposition's protests pushing for economic and electoral reforms in the country, faulting a statement released by an ambassador whose name he did not disclose at the time.
“We condemn in the strongest terms possible what has happened today. Today is a very sad day in the history of this country. This shows that we’re degenerating into the colonial stage, where lives of Africans did not matter at all because there’s no reason why police should use this kind of force against unarmed citizens who are merely exercising their democratic rights,” he said.
“My own car was hit seven times with live bullets, and the direction of the bullets was all aimed at me. These people have been threatening and blackmailing us, unfortunately, the friends of this country are not helping. Look at the statement released by some ambassador based here, you would think that they live in a different country; they’re actually adding fuel to this conflict, instead of being independent and neutral arbiters.”
A police water cannon sprays pink water on Raila's convoy on March 30, 2023. /RAILA ODINGA
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