President Ruto receives grand welcome in Kondele three years after his motorcade was stoned

More than three years since his campaign convoy was stoned in Kondele, Kisumu County, President William Ruto and his delegation were on Saturday hospitably received, with hardline positions held by Kenya Kwanza leaders fizzling out.

The President, in a vivid recollection, recounted events of November 2021, when his campaign convoy was stoned, and leveraging on the political insurance Raila Odinga and ODM offered, made his case before a people and a place he was politically loathed.

"Watu ya Kondele, kumbe ni nyinyi, kumbe ni nyinyi! Kwanza niko na kesi kubwa na nyinyi watu wa Kondele, haki ya Mungu mmenitesa sana. Mkiendelea kunitesa nitawashtaki kwa Baba, na mkizidi, ntawashtaki kwa Mungu,” he said.

Since coming to power, President Ruto and his lieutenants projected Odinga, who is held in high regard in Kondele, as a political troublemaker, ruling out any détente with him.

However, he touted his recently created broad-based government, qualifying it as a panacea to Kenya’s political challenges, along with his newfound political partner, Odinga.

"Vile tulikubaliana na Baba, ni makosa ama ni sawa? Ni sawa ama si sawa, tuendelee ama tusiendelee? Tuendelee kuunganisha Kenya? Siasa ya kutengana, siasa ya kutengana, jameni hiyo siasa tuwache nyuma, tuungane tuwe kitu kimoja," Ruto said.

Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua, who played the poster child role in calling out Odinga in the early months of the Kenya Kwanza administration, adjusted to the new norm, with express support for the Ruto-Raila relations, which he vehemently opposed, pledging to block any attempts to bridge their differences, including setting up traps.

"Nyinyi mlikuwa mnataka Baba akuwe Rais, na mimi nilitaka mtu wangu William Ruto akuwe Rais, lakini sasa tumetatua. Rais wa nne Uhuru Kenyatta alikuwa ametuambia Raila ni mtu mzuri, Rais William Ruto pia alisema Baba ni mtu mzuri, sasa marais wawili wakisema Baba ni mtu mzuri, ni naweza kupinga? Hata mimi nasema Baba ako sawa,” Gachagua stated.

National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah added: “Mimi nataka niwaambie watu wa Kondele na Kisumu na Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Baba na Ruto wameamua kuunganisha Wakenya pasiwe na ubaguzi au maeneo tunakotoka."

The move marks a departure from hardline positions held by the Kenya Kwanza leadership, reflecting Kenya's political class, less than two months since the youth-led demonstrations raised core governance issues that appear less significant for the political elite.