Nairobi — Central Organisations Trade Union (COTU) Secretary General Francis Atwoli has blamed former President Uhuru Kenyatta for Raila Odinga's loss in the 2022 General Election.
Speaking during an interview on Citizen TV on Wednesday night, Atwoli argued that although Kenyatta publicly endorsed Raila's presidential bid, he failed to actively mobilise and coordinate the campaign machinery, a lapse he said significantly contributed to Azimio's defeat.
This comes amid rising political tensions within the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM), nearly three months after the death of the former Prime Minister.
"At a certain point, we must accept defeat. Former President Uhuru Kenyatta bears responsibility for Raila's loss in 2022. Even if we were to amend the Constitution to accommodate him, that would not make Raila a winner. And even if Uhuru were to contest in 2027, he would not defeat President Ruto," Atwoli said.
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The trade unionist maintained that Kenyatta did not adequately rally key political leaders and campaign teams that were expected to drive Raila's bid across the country.
According to Atwoli, the former president appeared supportive in public but failed to take decisive steps to consolidate the campaign and provide strategic leadership.
Atwoli also issued a caution to former Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang'i, who was recently appointed Jubilee Party Deputy Leader and has declared his intention to seek the presidency with Kenyatta's backing.
"Uhuru looked like he was supporting Baba, but he never convened meetings with the people who were actively campaigning for Raila. Now I hear he wants Matiang'i to be president. If Matiang'i is not careful, Uhuru will not make him president. If he could not make Raila president, how can he make Matiang'i president?" Atwoli posed.
This comes days after Speaking on Saturday during the burial of Embakasi North MP James Gakuya's mother, Sifuna launched a blistering attack on Junet, accusing him of hypocrisy and misusing funds donated by Uhuru to support Raila's campaign.
In a fiery address, Sifuna reminded ODM supporters that Raila recorded his strongest-ever performance in the Mt. Kenya region in 2022, garnering over one million votes; a feat he attributed in large part to Uhuru's backing.
Sifuna openly thanked the former President for bankrolling the campaign, saying much of the money ODM used came directly from Uhuru.
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He directly accused Junet of now pretending that Uhuru's money was "dirty", despite having benefited from it at the time.
"But now there is one fool who has suddenly realised that Uhuru Kenyatta's money is bad. I want to ask Junet: when did Uhuru's money start being bad? It was on the day you were taking that money. And you didn't even bring all of it to the party you kept some for yourself and your women,"
" The day we begin auditing the 2022 election, it's good that you've started this debate so that everyone can say what role they played,"Sifuna stated.
Sifuna went ahead to accuse Junet of pocketing campaign funds instead of paying agents, leading to Raila's defeat in key battlegrounds.
He alleged that agents were abandoned on election day, allowing rivals to sal to victory, and went as far as to claim that but for Junet's actions, ODM would be in government today.
The outspoken lawmaker also dismissed suggestions that he could be disciplined or expelled from the party, insisting that ODM's position remains unchanged: that Raila never endorsed President William Ruto for re-election in 2027.
