President William Ruto has unveiled a committee, aimed at campaigning for Azimio la Umoja party leader Raila Odinga’s candidature for the African Union (AU) commission chairperson role.
The committee, financed through the exchequer, has drawn members from the government and is set to recruit more officials from the opposition to strengthen the plan.
According to local reports, Ruto lobbied for Raila in various African countries and paved the way for the opposition leader to announce his interest in the top AU job.
Speaking in Addis Ababa in Ethiopia on Friday, Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign and Diaspora Affairs Musalia Mudavadi announced that it was Eastern Africa’s time to take over the AU’s leadership.
“The Central, Southern and Western Africa regions have had their share since 2002, so it is now time for the Eastern and Northern Africa regions. Under the rotational rules, Eastern Africa has the first opportunity when the term of the current chair expires end of this year,” Mudavadi stated.
Azimio la Umoja leaders led by Kalonzo Musyoka on Friday rallied behind their principal, promising to support his bid for the top AU job.
“We fully support his decision, and we shall back his candidature to our fullest capacity,” Kalonzo stated.
Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo on Thursday, February 15 endorsed Raila for the AU job, noting that the Azimio leader was the right candidate to take over from Moussa Faki.
"I have been consulting widely. I think I am ready to serve the continent of Africa," Raila stated while speaking after the endorsement.
Raila Odinga also accepted the endorsement to run for the Africa Union commission job, set for February 2025. The opposition leader rallied behind his peers at the Au to back his bid, citing his exemplary record as the former union's High Representative for Infrastructure Development.
"It means that I am going to work for Africa for the period that I'll be in that office. It doesn't mean that I will not participate in Kenyan politics forever, it is only during that period," Raila told a local media station.
If elected, Raila Odinga will serve at the African Union from 2025 to 2028, a year after Kenya’s next general elections.
