This is why Raila is a hot candidate for the 2022 elections in expert opinion

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Raila Amollo Odinga

According to an expert opinion, Raila’s new appointment as AU High Representative for Infrastructure Development will only activate and increase his political activities. A nominated senator has pointed that Raila is now even in a better position to win the 2022 elections.

One of the reasons he stated is because the holder of this new AU office must be a person of influence with cross border diplomatic networks and a proven record of success.

His performance in several government positions was among the reasons he was appointed. In fact, since his job is well cut out for him, Kenya is bound to benefit immensely through infrastructure development.

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Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga of NASA coalition gestures during a swearing-in ceremony as the president of the People’s Assembly in Nairobi

This will endear him more to the people of Kenya and position him for the presidency in 2022. Besides, Raila will be lobbying African heads of state as a Pan-Africanist to achieve the ideals and restore the derailed dream of integrating Africa. Again, this will give him an experience that he will use in transforming our country should he win the 2022 elections.

History clearly indicates that appointments to special envoy positions of this magnitude with well-defined roles have largely been a preserve of prominent personalities, including former heads of state.

Raila Odinga’s political ideology can be loosely styled as social democracy, more closely aligned with American left wing politics. His position was once in favour of a parliamentary system as seen when he initially backed a Constitution giving executive powers to a Prime Minister but he subsequently changed to a presidential system with a devolved power structure, which is reflected in Kenya’s current constitution.

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Raila is seen as the main force behind devolution now enshrined in Kenya’s constitution as an essential part of Kenya’s governance system. This was inspired by a feeling that all successive governments under the centralized power structure had consistently abused that power to favour certain areas along political or ethnic lines while denying many regions access to resources and development because of their ethnicity or perceived disloyalty. Devolution aimed to address this and guarantee regions their fair share of resources regardless of their political affiliation or ethnicity.

He will have another office in Nairobi, complete with staff and advisers, to keep his Building Bridges initiative with Uhuru on track and also manage his local presence. He will definitely be controlling what goes on here in Kenya. Besides, while he will be criss-crossing the continent and world to push for Africa’s infrastructure development, Kenya is bound to benefit through various sectors and that will boost our economy.

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Besides his own father, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga, Raila is identified as one of the leading forces behind the democratization process of Kenya, particularly during the repressive regime of President Daniel Arap Moi  (1978-2002) and the lead-up to the adoption of the new Constitution (2010) that re-affirmed many formerly neglected fundamental rights.

Despite his failed bids to win the presidency, Raila remains a towering figure in Kenyan politics; his name and influence in the Kenyan political scene remains formidable, even though he has also elicited passionate loathe and enmity in some quarters, particularly from leading figures in the ruling administration, past and present. Raila Odinga is seen by many Kenyans as a forward-thinking and strategic leader.

Do you think Raila should should solely focus on infrastructure development or target to run Kenya as well?

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