Ruto offers Raila job on condition that he retires from active politics
President William Ruto wants his fierce rival Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Alliance leader Raila Odinga to retire from active politics so he could be offered a job.
Ruto revealed he was ready to offer Raila a job to support the country in other initiatives like the Great Lakes region where the former premier has contacts.
“When Raila Odinga decides to retire, I think there are roles he can play as a Kenyan leader. He can support the country in other initiatives, in other areas may be in the Great Lakes region because he has contacts there; he can work with the rest of us as an elder statesman, as a person who has served as Prime Minister of Kenya. It is not for me to choose. I mean it is for Kenyans. Kenyans love these leaders,” Ruto said during an interview with BBC.
Ruto says no to 'handshake' with Raila
The President further stressed that there would not be another handshake like the one between retired President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila.
Ruto termed the Raila-Uhuru handshake as the biggest 'fraud' for the people of Kenya, saying it should have never happened in the first place.
"As President, I would deploy all the resources we have for the good of the country, to provide for the country positively and if Raila Odinga came by, I would find something for him to do but not in the handshake arrangement. That one I ruled out a long time ago. We want to have a functional democracy," Ruto said.
"The handshake arrangement was the biggest fraud for the people of Kenya. It shouldn’t have happened. Once you compromise the opposition, once you compromise oversight, once you compromise the line between government and the opposition, you are headed in the wrong direction. Many wrong things will happen as they did happen,” he added.
The President further revealed that he enjoys a cordial relationship with both Raila and Uhuru.
“Today, I speak to Uhuru Kenyatta as our former President and I speak to Raila Odinga. They are leaders in our country. We have a country to look after and we are not enemies. We are competitors, we are compatriots, we have a country to look after. Whether you are in the Executive as a President like me and ministers or you are in opposition like Raila Odinga and his troops, we are serving the same country,” he said.
Ruto gave his predecessor Uhuru Kenyatta a job moments after he was sworn in as the Head of State and Government at a packed Kasarani stadium on Tuesday, September 13, 2022.
Ruto while addressing the nation after taking the oath of the office revealed that retired President Kenyatta will be steering peace initiatives in the region.
