Former Nairobi Governor Evans Kidero revealed why Azimio la Umoja Coalition leader Raila Odinga lost grip of the Nyanza region during the 2022 general election.
In an interview with K24 on Wednesday, January 25, Kidero who unsuccessfully vied for the Homa Bay gubernatorial seat, stated that he tried saving Raila from the loss but his efforts bore no fruits.
The business executive turned politician claimed that he warned the ODM chief in the run up to the polls, after observing a fallout within Odinga's backyard.
“I am the only one who went around Nyanza and I even told him there was a bit of division between independent candidates and six-piece ODM people.
Please let all get together because what we want for you as president is much more than these seats we want at the governor level but that never happened,” Kidero recalled talking to Raila.
Through much sacrifice, Kidero explained how he campaigned for the Azimio flag bearer in Nyanza after he lost the party ticket to Gladys Wanga.
“I was in Orange Democratic Movement(ODM). Despite my being thrown out without being given a chance for the nomination I still went ahead and campaigned for 'Baba' when his six-piece choices were not campaigning for him just waiting to be selected,” he noted.
According to the former City Hall boss, the fallout in the vote-rich Nyanza block, caused 700,000 registered voters not cast their ballots.
He further added that Nyanza leaders, Speaker of the National Assembly Moses Wetangula and ANC Party Leader Musalia Mudavadi were not the reason why part of the block backed President Willam Ruto, who was the Kenya Kwanza candidate.
“The people of Nyanza had already gone to Ruto before the leaders even came. Baba discovered that the people he thought were his had already left and are working with the government,” he added.
Commenting on Raila's Kamukunji rally, Kidero noted that he was looking for relevance after finding out he had lost most of his followers.
He condemned the opposition for disrupting normal operations with his many demands, especially on a day when schools were opening for a new academic calendar.
"Having a rally on a day when kids are going back to school is not right, even if they wanted to resist, they should have chosen another day and not interrupted the resumption of schools," he remarked.
