The Orange Democratic Movement has refuted claims that its party leader, Raila Odinga, is indisposed following ongoing reports that his health is deteriorating.
In a statement on Sunday morning, his office clarified that although Raila had travelled out of the country on Friday, he did not travel to Europe for treatment as alluded by some media houses.
However, it did not specify where the former Prime Minister had travelled to, although it insisted that a public communication would have been made if he had been ill, as had been done previously.
"Hon. Raila travelled out of the country on Friday evening-one of the many trips he has made this year, and definitely not the last," the statement read in part.
"He definitely did not travel to Europe as reported by bloggers and broadcast by some media houses. He is not indisposed, as prayed for by his frustrated opponents."
In the statement, the ODM Secretariat accused the United Opposition, led by the former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, of starting the unfounded rumours for political gain.
"The political formation of impeached former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and his struggling team of Kalonzo Musyoka and Eugene Wamalwa, among others, are on a familiar campaign of misinformation on the health of former Prime Minister and ODM Party Leader Raila Odinga," the statement read in part.
It even accused the opposition of co-opting sections of mainstream media that are allegedly picking feeds from bloggers, including AI-generated images, and broadcasting them as investigative reporting.
Over the past two weeks, Raila, who has been allied with President William Ruto for months now, has been missing from public view, sparking concerns over his whereabouts.
On Friday, October 4, The Star newspaper ran a front-page headline, "Where Is Raila?" leading to more speculations.
Most notably, the absence came at a time when the ODM party was gearing up towards its much-anticipated 20th anniversary, culminating in its eventual postponement on Saturday.
The event, which was scheduled for between October 10 and 12 in Mombasa, was postponed to between November 14 and 16.
However, the event planning committee attributed the delay to needing to enhance inclusivity, stating, "After careful consideration, the Party Leader graciously agreed to our request to expand the program and ensure inclusivity by engaging with more counties before converging in Mombasa for the grand celebrations."
