Ruto wishes Raila well as they step out to AU HQs-“Good luck buddy”
Addis Ababa – Raila Odinga’s moment of reckoning nears as the African heads of state convene at the African Union (AU) headquarters for the AU Commission chairperson’s election.
Raila’s bid is being supported and bankrolled by the Kenyan president.
On Saturday, February 15, President William Ruto accompanied Raila to the AU headquarters ahead of the secret ballot vote.
The two leaders appeared to be in high spirits as they left their accommodation spaces for Nelson Mandela Hall where the 38th Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly is being held.
Onetime political rivals, Ruto and Raila boarded the same vehicle to the assembly, with the president extending his message of goodwill to the former.
“Good luck buddy,” Ruto said.
It is known that the Kenyan government stewarded Raila’s campaign across the continent; a secretariat constituted of seasoned diplomats strategised for him and traversed the continent in selling his bid.
The veteran Kenyan politician will face off with Djibouti’s long-serving Foreign Affairs Minister
The vote, should it end in Raila’s favour, will bolster Nairobi’s profile on the continent.
Kenya made a stab at the continental post for the first time in 2017 when its then Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed lost the vote to the outgoing chairperson, Chad’s former prime minister Moussa Faki.
The new occupant of the post will be charged with driving Africa toward its Agenda 2063.
Source: TUKO.co.ke