On May 9, 2012, Parliament was the venue of a heated showdown as the bitter rivalry between then-Prime Minister Raila Odinga and his former close ally, now turned archrival, then-Eldoret North MP William Ruto yet again played out on the floor of the house.
The two traded barbs over the culture of political nomadism, with Ruto portraying Raila as the undisputed record-holder in party hopping.
"The Prime Minister holds the record in this house for having changed parties. He hasn't told us how he managed to change to all these parties, I think he must be in his 8th party. What drove him from one party to another? Was it the policies he was following as he's telling the house?" Ruto posed.
Raila's response was swift and brutal, leaving not only the entire house in stitches, but also Ruto could not contain his laughter at Odinga's rejoinder.
"The honourable member is saying I hold the record. I have changed political parties 4 times because Narc was not a political party, as such, we were only in LDP,
Mr Speaker, KANU, ODM, UDM, and URP are four. He himself has changed parties four times like myself," the former PM stated while pointing at Ruto.
The entire house burst into laughter, leaving the current deputy president tongue-tied, and he soon joined in the laughter.
The fierce rivalry between the two leaders demonstrates just how far apart two political allies can drift.
12 years ago, the two were inseparable as bosom buddies, having campaigned vigorously against Mwai Kibaki's presidency.
DP Ruto was Raila’s junior political partner during this period and he fought tooth and nail to help him ascend to the presidency.
Their fallout came soon after the highly-disputed 2007 General Election.
Speaking during a recent interview (February 26, 2020) on KTN News, Raila dismissed the claims that he is fighting DP Ruto and claimed that he is responsible for Ruto’s political prowess.
“Why should I fight Ruto? In fact, it is me who recruited him to the change movement and helped him sharpen his political tactics,” he revealed.
Watch the Raila-Ruto showdown in parliament on May 9, 2012, below:
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