Raila Odinga, through his presidential campaign spokesperson, Prof Makau Mutua, has addressed reports of cracks within the Azimio La Umoja coalition following shaky remarks by Wiper leader, Kalonzo Musyoka, in the recent past.
Mutua, while appearing on a local TV station for an interview on Tuesday, March 22, dismissed reports that there were disagreements in the coalition, adding that the coalition principals were united.
The spokesperson stated that Kalonzo was only being politically strategic, with the coalition principals expected to hold discussions on how top seats will be distributed among member parties.
"We hold the former Vice President, Kalonzo Musyoka, in high regard and we are pleased that he joined Azimio. Whenever you open up your tent and include more people, there is also a need to rearrange the sitting arrangement.
"He is obviously thinking out aloud with the country about what position he would like at the dinner table. The kind of things he has said should not be taken literally and should be understood as processes on conversations," stated Mutua.
Kalonzo's remarks had earlier on raised concerns with Kenyans viewing his assertions as a recipe for chaos and disagreement between him and Raila.
Among the issues the Wiper leader raised is that he be named the coalition's running mate and that the name of the coalition remains Azimio One Kenya Alliance.
In response, Mutua reiterated that the name of the coalition will remain as Azimio La Umoja, explaining that OKA did not join Azimio. Rather, he stated that it was individual parties in OKA that signed a coalition agreement with Azimio.
"The document that was signed in KICC was a document to form a coalition called Azimio La Umoja. The law does not permit two coalitions to come together," he stated.
Mutua also dispelled allegations that President Uhuru Kenyatta was the force behind Raila's presidential bid, stating that the ODM boss was a man of his own.
He added that Azimo was the brainchild of Raila, detailing how the former premier started the journey to form the coalition that now has close to 30 political parties.
"On December 10, 2021, we were at Kasarani and that was an affair that was developed by Raila and ODM. It is only other people that have joined us.
"Azimio was developed by Raila and ODM. The fact that Mr. Kenyatta has joined us after falling out with his Deputy does not mean that he is a pivot of Azimio," Mutua clarified.
