President William Ruto and opposition leader Raila Odinga in Uganda in February.
President William Ruto has signalled a possible coalition with Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga that could lead to a rebirth of their 2007 Pentagon ahead of the 2027 elections.
It comes as the head of state plans a week-long visit to Mr Odinga's Nyanza backyard from Wednesday.
The president's sentiments in Kakamega on Saturday that his broad-based government, which has seen former ODM party officials appointed to the Cabinet, is not a short-term venture, has raised the stakes on a possible working arrangement with Mr Odinga.
President Ruto has already appointed Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi to oversee Mr Odinga's campaigns for the chairmanship of the African Union Commission (AUC), a mission that is expected to cement their working relationship.
President Ruto, Mr Odinga, Mr Mudavadi and other regional leaders were key partners of the ODM in the 2007 elections, mobilising the western Kenya bloc – Rift Valley, Nyanza and Western – to give former President Mwai Kibaki a run for his money in his re-election bid.
Although Mr Kibaki won the election, it was the most disputed presidential election result in Kenya's history, with more than 1,000 people killed and more than 600,000 others displaced from their homes as a result of the post-election violence.
There have been talks that Mr Odinga, who secured President Ruto's support for his AUC chairmanship bid, may reciprocate by supporting him for a second term after the formation of a strong united western Kenya bloc similar to the 2007 ODM formation.
Other members of the 2007 ODM Pentagon were former ministers Najib Balala, Charity Ngilu and the late Joe Nyaga, who helped drive Mr Odinga's election campaigns.
Political analyst Martin Oloo argues that President Ruto, knowing that Central Kenya may not vote for him to the last man in the 2027 elections, is looking to Western and Nyanza regions to shore up his support.
“By standing by Baba (Mr Odinga) and dispatching him to the AU, his chances in Nyanza will be okay,” Mr Oloo said.
President Ruto said that as a member of the ODM party, the manifesto of the orange outfit and his United Democratic Alliance (UDA) have similar clauses, making it easier for the two formations to join hands.
“Some of the common clauses in Kenya Kwanza’s manifesto and that of ODM include the Universal Health Coverage, Housing Programme, Small and Medium Enterprises Development, among others,” the president said during the thanksgiving ceremony for Cooperative Cabinet Secretary Wycliffe Oparanya.
UDA and ODM, according to the President, are one and the same considering that he served as ODM deputy leader and therefore knows a lot about the orange party.
“I thank my brother Raila Odinga for accepting to work with me. We want to work together and bring the country’s interest forward. There comes a time when the prosperity, transformation and unity of the country comes first,” the head of state added.
Mr Mudavadi agreed that “the Kenyan political landscape is constantly evolving,” but added that the focus at the moment should be on addressing the immediate challenges facing our nation.
“The Pentagon was a product of specific circumstances in 2007. Kenya has moved on and so have we. We believe that Kenyans are looking for leaders focused on delivering concrete results, not rehashing past political alignments. Our focus is entirely on implementing our economic agenda and ensuring a brighter future for all Kenyans,” Mr Mudavadi told the Nation in an earlier interview.
But in a sign of a possible working arrangement, the Amani National Congress (ANC) party founder has already committed the outfit to a merger with UDA, and ODM, the president has hinted, could follow suit ahead of the 2027 polls.
Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua said President Ruto's broad-based government is good for new friendships, including with the opposition.
On Saturday, the DP, who had been critical of a possible working relationship between the president and the opposition, praised the head of state for what he called "opening up the country through the broad-based government and allowing communities to seek friendship with others – including those in the opposition – in building national unity".
Speaking during the Maa Community 25th Inter Ministries Union prayers at Inkinyie Primary and Junior Secondary School grounds in Kajiado County, Mr Gachagua said President Ruto had reconstituted an inclusive government to show the importance of working even with opponents in elections for the good of the nation.
“The President has done well in opening up Kenya for talks, allowing us to seek friendship from across the country. Next week, he will be in Nyanza region, seeking friendship. That is the way to go,” the DP said.
ODM co-deputy party leader Simba Arati said they were keen to work with President Ruto to stabilise the country.
“We want to walk together as Kenyans and build our nation. Even though we don’t have an agreement with Kenya Kwanza, we have donated our senior leaders to help President Ruto and we shall see if we shall move together in 2027,” Mr Arati said at the fete.
National Assembly Minority Leader Junet Mohamed, who conveyed Mr Odinga’s greetings at the ceremony, called for reconciliation between the two political formations, citing bitter exchanges during the 2022 election campaigns.
“Let’s forgive each other on the 2022 campaign utterances and support an end to the politics of exclusion,” said Mr Mohamed.
He, however, noted that as a minority party in parliament, ODM will continue to play its role diligently and ensure that the government functions according to the constitution.
“We shall continue to discharge our role of representation, oversight and legislation,” he said.
Last week, ODM slammed its partners in the Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition over what it called a plot to oust Mr Odinga from the coalition leadership.
“Our members, just like football players, have only been loaned to Kenya Kwanza to serve in the cabinet and we have no coalition agreement with Kenya Kwanza,” said ODM co-deputy party leader Godfrey Osotsi.
ODM National Chairperson Gladys Wanga said there is no agreement between ODM and Kenya Kwanza, which makes the two parties joint partners in government.
"In response to a national emergency and the need to steady the nation, ODM agreed to release, in their individual capacities, the members who had been tapped by the president," she said in reference to the ODM party nominees to President Ruto’s cabinet.
Some of the ODM leaders named in the broad-based cabinet include former ODM deputy party leaders Hassan Joho and Wycliffe Oparanya, former ODM national chairman John Mbadi and former secretary for political affairs Opiyo Wandayi, as well as former member of the party's elections board Beatrice Askul.
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