How did Raila Odinga with State machinery coupled with extraordinary grooming lose the presidency? The answers to this question have left the Azimio la Umoja fraternity in disbelief.
A special report by NTV dubbed “How Raila Lost” has rubbed more salt in the wound.
Interviews from key individuals at the heart of Raila’s presidential bid have given clues of how Azimio – supported by the incumbent President Uhuru Kenyatta – missed the finishing line to take the trophy.
Raila’s chief agent Saitabao Kanchory, Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, Jubilee Secretary-General Jeremiah Kioni, and Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna spoke to Kennedy Murithi, shared divided opinions on what transpired, but one thing seemed to agree was on was an overreliance on the “deep state”.
Owino faults former Interior Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho for the defeat. He claims that Kibicho betrayed the cause when things started going south – that is when it became apparent William Ruto was snatching victory.
“I told Kibicho, the way things are moving, we need to act very fast. He asked ‘Babu, what do we do?’ I told Kibicho we need to arrest election boss Wafula Chebukati immediately for bungling elections.
“Do you know what he told me “Babu, stop these unnecessary arguments. This man was supposed to be our person, but what is happening? I told him, it is you to arrest Chebukati,” he recalled.
He suggested two options to Kibicho. One to have IEBC Vice-chair Juliana Cherara announce Raila as the winner or have a forced rerun.
Joe Mucheru
Kanchory was of the view that three people – former ICT Minister Joe Mucheru, Azimio Secretary-General Junet Mohamed, and Makau Mutua – betrayed the cause.
“Junet Mohamed is one man who purported to know everything. He nullified everything everyone else said. He ensured that nobody came close to baba who would have helped him because he wanted to be the alpha and omega of the campaigns. Joe Mucheru had no other mission other than to sabotage our agents’ management system. Everything went south the day Junet and Mucheru came and said Makau would be in charge of the command centre. I describe him as a deaf, mute, blind mouse that sees no evil, hears no evil, and says no evil. He kept brushing everything aside,” he said.
