African Union envoy on infrastructure and development Raila Odinga on Friday engaged in a war of words with Kiambu Governor Ferdinand Waititu over his welcoming in the county.
Speaking at Tatu City, Kiambu, during the groundbreaking ceremony of affordable housing units, Raila asserted that he was free to visit any county in the country without seeking approval from anybody.
"I need nobody's permission to come here. I can go to any part of Kenya without seeking anybody's permission least of all the permission of a governor..." Raila remarked.
This is after Waititu insinuated that the ODM leader was only welcomed in Kiambu courtesy of his previous post as the Premier in the country.
“The people of Kiambu have no problem with Raila coming to the County as the former Prime Minister,” the outspoken Kiambu Governor maintained.
Raila also took the opportunity to urge Kenyans to embrace the idea of Special Economic Zones, pointing out that the project would help ease the cost of living and enhance President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Big Four agenda, which includes housing.
“I bring greetings from the President. He knows I am here, in his backyard, and I bring his blessings for this project,” Raila stated.
Raila further reiterated his commitment to the war against graft and impunity, while at the same time calling for unity amongst Kenyans.
“We want to promote unity in this country. We want to fight corruption. Corruption is an 'animal' we are going to deal with irrespective of who is committing it,” the former Prime Minister declared.
On the other hand, Waititu, who has openly declared his allegiance to the Tanga Tanga team, a movement associated with Deputy President William Ruto, has recently been in the limelight for allegedly embezzling funds from the county government.
