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Raila Odinga’s presidential ambitions go down the drain as deputy Mudavadi quits party in protest
Newstime Africa
4/22/2012
Excerpt:
"Despite the apparent support from Barack Obama, Kenya’s Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, has suffered a massive political blow to his aspirations of becoming his country’s next president, as the very popular Musalia Mudavadi, who happens to be the deputy leader of Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement, has called it quits after a dispute over the nomination of the party’s presidential candidate. Raila Odinga, is the son of the late doyen of opposition politics in Kenya and one-time Vice President, Oginga Odinga. Raila has had his eyes on the presidency for some time after his late father tried everything in the political books to grab power but failed. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1992, and his thirst for power has not been a secret as he was placed under house arrest for seven months after being suspected of collaborating with the plotters of a failed coup attempt against President Daniel Arap Moi in 1982. He was later charged with treason and detained without trial for six years.
(bold emphasis added)
According to a biography released in July 2006, Raila was far more involved in the attempted coup than he had previously claimed. After the book was published, members of the country’s parliament called for him to be arrested and charged, but the statute of limitations at that time had already passed and since the information was contained in a book, it could not be said to have openly confessed his involvement. Raila was rearrested in September of 1988 for his involvement with human rights and pro-democracy activists who were pressing for multi-party democracy in Kenya, a country that was then a one-party state. He fled the country and made his way to Norway accusing the government of attempting to assassinate him.
There have been recent calls from the country’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs for Odinga to answer to allegations regarding impropriety in the purchase and subsequent sale of land on the Kisumu Molasses Plant, where 250 acres of land with machinery was sold for KSHS. 3,6 million, when in fact land in that area normally go for KSHS. 2.5 million for half an acre. There was also a scandal involving the country’s staple food, maize, when Odinga was accused with others of selling a huge quantity of the crop and later claimed that it was not good for human consumption. These and many other political controversies in the past may now come to hunt Raila and ultimately dent his political chances of becoming Kenya’s next president. His desperation to asume the presidency can only be matched by his ruthless ambition to remove any obstacle in the way preventing him clinching the top political job, including silencing his main rivals and disabling their political aspirations."
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View the complete article at:
http://www.newstimeafrica.com/archives/25317
Newstime Africa
4/22/2012
Excerpt:
"Despite the apparent support from Barack Obama, Kenya’s Prime Minister, Raila Odinga, has suffered a massive political blow to his aspirations of becoming his country’s next president, as the very popular Musalia Mudavadi, who happens to be the deputy leader of Odinga’s Orange Democratic Movement, has called it quits after a dispute over the nomination of the party’s presidential candidate. Raila Odinga, is the son of the late doyen of opposition politics in Kenya and one-time Vice President, Oginga Odinga. Raila has had his eyes on the presidency for some time after his late father tried everything in the political books to grab power but failed. He has been a Member of Parliament since 1992, and his thirst for power has not been a secret as he was placed under house arrest for seven months after being suspected of collaborating with the plotters of a failed coup attempt against President Daniel Arap Moi in 1982. He was later charged with treason and detained without trial for six years.
(bold emphasis added)
According to a biography released in July 2006, Raila was far more involved in the attempted coup than he had previously claimed. After the book was published, members of the country’s parliament called for him to be arrested and charged, but the statute of limitations at that time had already passed and since the information was contained in a book, it could not be said to have openly confessed his involvement. Raila was rearrested in September of 1988 for his involvement with human rights and pro-democracy activists who were pressing for multi-party democracy in Kenya, a country that was then a one-party state. He fled the country and made his way to Norway accusing the government of attempting to assassinate him.
There have been recent calls from the country’s Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs for Odinga to answer to allegations regarding impropriety in the purchase and subsequent sale of land on the Kisumu Molasses Plant, where 250 acres of land with machinery was sold for KSHS. 3,6 million, when in fact land in that area normally go for KSHS. 2.5 million for half an acre. There was also a scandal involving the country’s staple food, maize, when Odinga was accused with others of selling a huge quantity of the crop and later claimed that it was not good for human consumption. These and many other political controversies in the past may now come to hunt Raila and ultimately dent his political chances of becoming Kenya’s next president. His desperation to asume the presidency can only be matched by his ruthless ambition to remove any obstacle in the way preventing him clinching the top political job, including silencing his main rivals and disabling their political aspirations."
.................................
View the complete article at:
http://www.newstimeafrica.com/archives/25317