Nandi Senator Samson Cherargei has stated that the US will not “in any way influence” Kenyan President William Ruto’s administration into reaching a handshake agreement with Azimio leader Raila Odinga.
Samson Cherargei, a senator from Nandi, described Odinga’s decision to travel the world in an effort to draw attention to himself and damage the reputation of Kenya as unfortunate on Sunday.
In contrast to the dire predictions of Azimio, Cherargei emphasised that the country is moving in the right direction.
“Regardless of Senator Coons’ presence, the United States will NOT in any way influence H.E. Dr. William Samoei Arap Ruto and the Kenya Kwanza administration into a handshake,” he stated.
The Nandi Senator went on to warn the Azimio coalition to brace themselves for a difficult road ahead, implying that their efforts to initiate talks with the Ruto administration would not be easy.
Meeting With Raila
Azimio la Umoja One Kenya coalition leader Raila Odinga held talks with visiting United States Senator Christopher Coons on Sunday.
The two met amid speculation that it was part of the international community’s ongoing efforts to mediate between the opposition and the ruling party.
There has been no official communication regarding the reasons for the meeting, but Raila appeared to be encouraged by their meeting.
“It was a pleasure, as always, to meet and exchange notes with my friend Senator Chris Coons.” “It was a productive afternoon,” Odinga said following his meeting with Coons.
The Coon-Raila meeting took place a day before a team of leaders drawn from the ruling and opposition parties that were picked to spearhead dialogue between the two sides officially began talks at the Bomas of Kenya.
It is not the first time Coons, the US Senator from Delaware, has been involved in a similar mission in Kenya.
The Senator was in Kenya shortly after William Ruto was elected President. Raila challenged the outcome of the 2022 election on August 9, 2022.
He was also in the country in 2017, following a contentious Presidential election. He would lead a US delegation that would mediate between President Uhuru Kenyatta and his rival, Raila Odinga.
Soon after, Uhuru and Raila reached an agreement, resulting in the now-famous “Handshake” deal on March 9, 2018.
