Kenya’s opposition leader Raila Odinga says he has secured the support of at least six heads of state in his African Union Commission chairperson bid.
Raila, who is aspiring to succeed Mousa Faki of Chad – who is serving his second a final term – on Thursday said he has been traversing across the continent seeking support from heads of state, who will cast their votes for the next AUC chairperson in 2025.
“I met [President William] Ruto and [Uganda’s Yoweri] Museveni. I went to get Museveni’s vote, then I met Ruto. They agreed that they will vote for me. Museveni said he will propose my name,” Raila said in Kisii, even as he reassured his supporters that he is not “going anywhere”, as Addis Ababa is “just two hours away by flight”.
Raila said he has been endorsed by regional presidents, key among them Tanzania’s Samia Suluhu Hassan, South Sudan’s Salva Kiir and DRC’s Felix Tshisekedi, and will next week travel to Rwanda to seek support from Rwanda President Paul Kagame.
“Next week I will meet Kagame, Mama Suluhu has said she will support me, Kiir has accepted. The other day I was with [South Africa’s Cyril] Ramaphosa, he said yes, Tshisekedi has said yes,” the veteran opposition politician added.
But while he declared he is ready to compete with other candidates who will show interest in the position, Raila said that if he is defeated, it would still be fine with him.
Former Somalia Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Fawzia Adam has been fronted by Mogadishu.
On January 14, 2024, Somali National Television reported that Ms Adam was being fronted by the Office of the Prime Minister “as part of the government’s strategy to promote Somalia’s influence in the international arena”.
A team has been crafted to lead Raila’s lobbying for the seat, and includes former Foreign Affairs Minister Amina Mohamed, who lost in the race in 2017, former Ambassador to US and France Elkanah Odembo, former IGAD Executive Secretary Amb Mahboub Maalim and former AU Deputy Chairman Amb Erastus Mwencha.
During Amina’s loss to Faki, among the countries that didn’t vote for Kenya, according to then South Sudan envoy to Ethiopia James Morgan, were Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti and Tanzania.
Morgan, who is currently the South Sudan Foreign Minister, was quoted by The Standard as saying, “South Sudan voted for Kenya but it is surprising that Uganda, Burundi, Djibouti and Tanzania did not vote for Kenya during the stages. We think it has to do with how Kenya relates with its neighbours. Burundi said Kenya interferes with her internal affairs by condemning the conflict there”..
“Uganda is also not happy with the way Kenya wants everything. I saw the Ugandan President in an animated discussion with his Tanzanian counterpart during the sixth round. In the seventh round, Tanzania didn’t vote for Kenya.”
But with Raila’s pronouncements, he appears to have started on a fair footing, given it is widely agreed it is Eastern African region’s turn to take the seat.
