Raila Sets New Condition Before Agreeing To Ruto Talks

Azimio Leader Raila Odinga on Wednesday, July 26 indicated that he was ready to hold talks with President William Ruto if there is a third-party mediator involved.

Speaking in an interview with AFP, Raila emphasized the importance of having an intermediary in the dialogue process, “even if it is a former President”. This is despite the Head of State never publicly discussing the possibility of third-party mediation.

According to the former Prime Minister, Ruto lacked consistency in terms of his statements and actions, further citing a lack of seriousness in committing to the dialogue.

“I think he is basically joking; he is not serious about the dialogue. If he wants to talk, I am ready for serious dialogue.

"Ruto is not somebody you can trust, he keeps changing words that is why I insist they must be a mediator between us. I am ready to talk if there is a mediator between us," revealed Raila.

He further stressed the importance of trust in any mediation efforts, and he believes that an impartial mediator can help bridge the divide and foster discussions.

Raila also claimed that South African President Cyril Ramaphosa expressed interest in mediating the dispute between the two but was turned down by Ruto.

“President Ramaphosa wants to come but President Ruto has refused,” Odinga added.

In an earlier interview, Raila raised an issue with President Ruto's call for truce talks, accusing him of dishonesty by using social media channels to send him a message instead of through official channels. 

"I think the President is not being serious. If he wanted to meet with me he would not invite me through social media. He knows my address, he knows my telephone number and everything. 

"He is basically just playing games, that is like a Public Relations (PR) exercise," he stated.

The ODM party leader reiterated that Ruto had blocked efforts by Tanzania President Samia Suluhu Hassan to bring the two leaders for mediatory talks, even though it was Ruto's government who had invited her to Kenya.

Raila further asserted that he was willing to engage in dialogue and had made this possible through his appointing of members to take part in the parliamentary bipartisan talks.

He claimed that the Head of State had backed away from the talks as soon as he noticed that the country was returning to peaceful affairs after the opposition called off the nationwide protests.

President Ruto issued a public statement on Twitter to Raila, saying that he was ready to meet him one on one and hold talks at the latter's convenience. However, in the interview, Raila did not respond to a question on whether or not he would honour the meeting.

The government, through State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohamed, dismissed Raila's claims of the nature of Suluhu's visit to Kenya, clarifying that Suluhu's visit to the country was not a State visit as the protocol was not observed regarding official visits by other world leaders to the country.