Was Raila Pushed Out Of AU Job Or He Quit On His Own Volition?

By: Joseph Mutua Ndonga

Worth Noting:

• Though the chairman AU commission Moussa Faki Mahamat did not raise any objections, he said he will present his request to the subsequent summit of AU for ratification and approval.
• This summit was held a few days ago in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and heads of state and the request was granted.
• In a letter communicating this, the AU commission chairman showered Raila with praises for his invaluable contribution to the cause of AU. He was a leading player in all-important docket of infrastructure. He has left an indelible mark.
• In his letter, Raila noted that if the continental body decides to give him new assignments in future, he will be ready to undertake them.

Was the Azimio La Umoja-One Kenya Coalition leader Raila Odinga pushed out of Africa Union (AU) top job or he quit on his own volition?

This is the question many Kenyans are asking. This was because of the contradictory statements emanating from his office and sources within the Kenyan government and diplomatic circles.

The latter two termed the move as a polite termination of his contract.

However, the letter from the former Prime Minister’s office which bore his signature gave a totally different picture.

Raila is the one who had requested the AU commission to allow him to step aside during an AU summit held in Dakar, Senegal. He said this will help him to focus on urgent matters he needed to address.

He had served as AU High Representative for Infrastructure Development for more than four years.

Though the chairman AU commission Moussa Faki Mahamat did not raise any objections, he said he will present his request to the subsequent summit of AU for ratification and approval.

This summit was held a few days ago in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and heads of state and the request was granted.

In a letter communicating this, the AU commission chairman showered Raila with praises for his invaluable contribution to the cause of AU. He was a leading player in all-important docket of infrastructure. He has left an indelible mark.

In his letter, Raila noted that if the continental body decides to give him new assignments in future, he will be ready to undertake them.

In the same breathe; Raila appeared to take a swipe at some of heads of state. They had been compromised by the leaders of powerful nations of the West to sing their song. As a result, they were a key obstacle to building a strong and united state of Africa.

Notably, President William Ruto was among the heads of state who had attended that summit in Addis Ababa.

The media reported that the decision to ‘terminate’ Raila’s contract (eight months before its expiry) was made at sidelines of the summit. This is after a top Kenyan representative complained that Raila had refused to recognize Dr William Ruto as the President of Kenya.

He is behaving more less like a rebel. He is currently holding countrywide protest rallies and his endgame is to try to stage a civilian coup against a democratically elected government of President Ruto.  His actions are an affront to laws and regulation governing the AU. AU abhors and rejects use force to remove the government from power.

Though the Kenyan representative was not named, the impression created is that Dr Ruto had a hand in the ‘polite termination’.

Apart from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirming the end of Raila’s tenure at AU, the government has remained tight-lipped on the matter.

Sources indicated that such a decision can only be made by plenary of head of states. But this  motion has to originate from somewhere. Who do you think will be the first to call for his removal? Your guess is as good as mine.

Well, Raila got this job immediately after he shook hands with then-President Uhuru Kenyatta. This would be widely interpreted as one of key fruits of the handshake deal.

Today, Raila is playing in the opposite side. He has totally refused to recognize Ruto’s presidency.

Putting aside the issue of whether he was pushed out or he left on his own volition, Raila will now have time to deal with ‘the pressing and urgent matters”

When I asked a friend what is up his sleeves, he told me: Mass action! Mass action!

It is not a coincidence that Raila has left AU job just a few days after he gave President Ruto a 14-day ultimatum to lower food prices, taxes. If he fails to heed the call, he will mobilize and lead Kenyans to participate in massive mass action. Let us wait and see.

Joseph Mutua Ndonga is a writer and political analyst based in Nairobi