Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party leader Raila Odinga on Wednesday, December 29, addressed the question of the longevity of his presidency should he be declared winner in the August 9, 2022 poll.
Speaking during an interview with Citizen TV, Raila indicated that he would not mind having a one-term presidency but did not fully commit to making a firm promise.
The ODM leader, who will be turning 76 on January 7, stated dismissed the notion that his age was a factor.
"Fine, so what?" Raila interjected, prompting Ombija to repeat the question, this time asking him if he will be a one-term president.
"Why not? Ask that question to Biden (Joe Biden, the President of the United States of America), he is one year older than me," the former Premier responded vaguely.
The African Union High Representative For infrastructure Development further opened up about expecting an endorsement from President Uhuru Kenyatta. He admitted that he would welcome support from the Head of State but not in the form of an endorsement.
"I'd say I don't want his endorsement, I only want his vote. I do not want to be seen as a project, I want to run as Raila Odinga, but if he offers me his vote, I will be very grateful," the ODM presidential candidate revealed.
When asked whether he would settle for a female running mate, Uhuru's handshake partner declined to comment stating that it was premature to have the running mate conversation.
Odinga announced that he was the best fit to lead the country, hinting that Kenya needed an engineer, which he trained for. He revealed that he would use his training to propel Kenya's development projects to bring to par with other countries.
"We need an engineer to enable the country to take off so that Kenya can leapfrog and catch up with the countries that were at the same state of development with Kenya in 1963," the former Prime Minister remarked.
He noted that the country has been led by anthropologists (Jomo Kenyatta), a teacher (Daniel arap Moi), an economist (Mwai Kibaki) and a political economist (Uhuru Kenyatta) who have grown the country in their respective areas of expertise.
