Mudavadi defends Kenya's 'huge' delegation in Addis Ababa as Raila prepares for AUC battle

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has slammed negative questions around the size of the Kenyan government delegation in Addis Ababa ahead of the African Union Commission (AUC) elections, given Kenya’s interest in capturing the Chairmanship.

Speaking in Addis Ababa on Wednesday, Mudavadi told Citizen Digital that the administration was “conscious of the economic situation,” and therefore “for all intents and purposes our delegation is not extraordinary.”

While he did not give specific numbers, the Prime CS said the delegation, as would be expected, included officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Presidency.

“President Ruto and I am the Minister for Foreign Affairs. And we have officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who anchor this process and we have a mission here… we have a lean delegation coming here.”

This said, Mudavadi did not discount that there would be a significant representation from Kenya but he was quick to stress that it would be self-sponsored.

“The Kenyans who are coming here. The ones who are being highlighted by yourselves, is people who are coming out of their volition. It’s not an expenditure from the government of Kenya," he said. 

"These are people who have decided because of their patriotism to come here to have an opportunity to give moral support to the candidature of Raila Amolo Odinga."

Odinga is facing Madagascar's Richard Randriamandrato (65) and Djibouti's Mohamoud Youssouf (60).

The successful candidate will succeed Chad's Moussa Faki who will exit after his two-term tenure which started in 2017.

The electoral process will commence on Wednesday in Addis Ababa, where the Executive Council will elect and appoint Commissioners during their session on February 12-13, 2025.

A winner will be declared when a two-thirds majority of Heads of State from the AU member states vote in their favour.

Speaking on Monday, Raila expressed complete confidence in his chances of clinching the seat but also acknowledged the uncertainty of the outcome. 

"I will go for the AU elections on Saturday. If I win, well and good. If I don’t, so be it. I am confident that, with God’s will, we shall succeed. If we win, we have succeeded. If we lose, we have also succeeded," Odinga said, striking a measured yet determined tone.

Despite his remarks, Raila made it clear that the stakes, though important, were not the end-all. 

"It is the final stretch for Raila Odinga’s African Union chairmanship bid as heads of state from across the continent prepare to cast their votes on Saturday," he reflected, emphasizing that he would accept the election results no matter the outcome. 

He also assured his supporters that regardless of the result, "I remain a proud son of Kenya."