After losing the 2022 presidential election to President William Ruto, Azimio la Umoja leader Raila was expected by a majority of Kenyans to leave the political scene and head to retirement.
The former Prime Minister has remained strong in the political scene, below are his memorable moments in 2023.
Anti-Government Demonstrations
Raila in March called for nationwide anti-government protests over the high cost of living, 2022 presidential results and reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
The government countered by deploying heavy police presence in areas considered Azimio strongholds.
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Raila called off the protests on April 2 after the Azimio reached an agreement with Kenya Kwanza to give dialogue a chance.
“In view of the foregoing, we stand down our demonstrations on Monday, April 3, 2023. We reserve our rights to call for demonstrations should this process fail to bear fruit, should there be no meaningful engagement or response from Hon Ruto our counteroffer is to continue with our demonstrations after one week,” said Raila.
The dialogue team from Kenya Kwanza and Azimio was formed to debate on issues affecting the country.
The team however failed to agree on key issues forcing Odinga to call another set of protests in July.
The demos were chaotic and led to the death of more than 100 Kenyans from different parts of the country.
Human rights bodies such as Amnesty International and religious leaders called for dialogue between Azimio and Kenya Kwanza leaders.
Raila then reportedly met with President Ruto in Mombasa and agreed to call off demos to give the bipartisan talks another chance.
Azimio formed a five-member team led by Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka while the Kenya Kwanza team was led by National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah.
The committee released its reports on November 25, with President Ruto saying he would implement the recommendations.
Raila also endorsed the recommendations describing the report as a good start.
However, he pointed out that the report was incomplete as it failed to address the high cost of living.
State House Banquet
Raila Odinga on Tuesday, October 31 joined other high-profile leaders at a State banquet organized in honour of King Charles III and Queen Camilla at State Nairobi.
This was the first time the opposition leader was seen at State House after the 2022 elections which he lost to Ruto.
The former Prime Minister was accompanied by National Assembly minority leader Opiyo Wandayi.
His presence at State House raised speculations among Kenyans with others wondering whether the former premier was in a secret handshake with President Ruto.
Raila explained on November 8 that he was invited personally by King Charles III to attend the State House dinner.
“I was invited by the King to the dinner at State House because he is a personal friend and we have worked with him in his foundation in rehabilitating Lake Naivasha which was polluted and marine life was dying in the lake,” Odinga stated.
Oil Dossier
Raila on November 12 released a dossier terming the government-to-government oil deal with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates a scam aimed at ripping off Kenyans.
The opposition claimed that there was no government-to-government oil deal between Kenya and Gulf countries but a deal between the Ministry of Energy and oil marketing companies in the gulf
“The Kenyan government did not sign any contract with Saudi Arabia or the United Arab Emirates (UAE) only the Cabinet Secretary for Energy and Petroleum signed a deal with state-owned petroleum companies in the Middle East,” Odinga alleged.
The former premier claimed that the government characterized the deal as government-to-government to shield three Kenyan companies from paying corporate tax.
President Ruto while responding to Raila maintained that the oil deal was conducted openly and transparently adding that it was necessary to ease the pressure on the Dollar.
He affirmed that he was committed to running a transparent and accountable Government devoid of scandals.
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