How Raila Odinga Ended Up in the Pockets of President Ruto’s Dubai Friends

Raila Odinga’s Financial Ambitions and the Gen Z Protests

Raila’s love for money is no secret. In Luo Nyanza politics, the highest bidder always lands the ODM party ticket.

For instance, in the 2022 Suba South MP seat, Caroli Omondi paid Raila millions to secure the ODM ticket, sidelining party chairman John Mbadi, who ended up with a nominated slot in parliament.

When the Gen Z demonstrations began, Raila, like Ruto, underestimated their potential impact. However, after the storming of parliament, it became evident that the youth’s fight for democratic principles was gaining momentum.

As the protests grew, Ruto reached out to Raila for support, fearing for his presidency and safety.

Raila capitalized on Ruto’s desperation, engaging key players from his inner circle. He convinced them that protecting Ruto’s presidency was crucial.

The narrative was that if Ruto resigned, Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua would take over, which was seen as a less favorable outcome.

The Role of Dubai’s Arab Sheikhs

Ruto enlisted the support of Arab oil sheikhs to convince Raila. They were told that if the Gen Z revolution consumed Kenya, their multi-billion-dollar investments would be at risk.

Consequently, they agreed to fund Raila, leading to a Sh67 billion investment deal between Kenya and the United Arab Emirates.

Raila’s Betrayal of Gen Z and Azimio

After securing the deal, Raila moved swiftly to make it an ODM affair, betraying Gen Z, his supporters, and Azimio heavyweights. Raila’s primary goal was to influence the formation of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and reform the judiciary.

The Dubai Money Transfer

Raila received the money without informing his Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party partners.

Public Deception and Future Plans

To divert attention from his betrayal of Gen Z, Raila’s team spun the narrative that he was meeting former President Uhuru Kenyatta in Dubai. This was a strategic move to raise stakes and shift public focus.

Siaya Governor James Orengo and other Azimio hardliners favored forming an interim government (IG) instead of a government of National Unity (GNU).

They believed the IG could oversee free and fair elections. However, Raila disregarded their stance and moved forward with ODM’s integration into Ruto’s administration.

Ruto’s friends in Dubai are now eyeing lucrative carbon credit projects in Kenya to recover their money. They also pushed for the nomination of Aden Duale for the Defense docket before he was moved to the environment ministry.

Gen Z has vowed to collect one million signatures to petition the African Union Commission (AUC) to disqualify Raila from the chairperson race.

They plan to highlight the state’s brutal killings during the protests and Raila’s betrayal. Despite Ruto’s apparent success in crushing the Gen Z rebellion, the movement plans to continue their psychological warfare against the government.

This ongoing conflict underscores the deep political and financial entanglements between Raila Odinga and President Ruto’s Dubai allies.