Raila rejoins campaign

Prime Minister Raila Odinga is back on the campaign trail and will on Saturday day attend a ‘Yes’ rally in Kisumu alongside President Kibaki.

The PM, who has been away from the referendum campaigns for the past one month during which he underwent surgery, appeared in the public away from his home for the first time on Friday when he joined more than 20,000 fans at the Nyayo Stadium to cheer on Kenyans to more gold medals in the Senior Africa Athletics Championship.

Mr Odinga later flew out to Kisumu where he and President Kibaki will lead a campaign meeting in support of the Proposed Constitution just four days to a national referendum set for August 4.

His spokesman Dennis Onyango said the PM will return to Nairobi to attend the final “Yes” rally in Nairobi on Sunday, which will be at Uhuru Park.

“He is back to make his contribution to the ‘Yes’ rallies,” he said.

His return comes as campaigns for and against the constitution reach fever pitch with tens of public meetings planned across the country.

On Saturday, the defacto leader of the “No” campaign, Mr William Ruto, will lead a big rally in Eldoret. The last major “No” rally will be held Sunday at Jamhuri Park in Nairobi.

Mr Odinga’s last ‘Yes’ rally was in Kakamega in June, and a few days later he was admitted at the Nairobi Hospital and underwent head surgery which kept him out of the campaigns. Even though he was discharged from hospital on July 4, he was under strict doctors’ instructions to take off time to rest.

No mobile network

However, the premier received streams of delegations at his Karen home until Wednesday last week when he left for Oldonyo Laro, a remote wildlife conservancy in Narok South near Loita Hills.

There are no motorable roads and has no mobile phone network. He was there for two days.

On Friday, athletics fans at the Nyayo Stadium cheered as he joined them to watch the ongoing African athletic championships and soon he himself was celebrating a clean sweep of medals by David Rudisha, Alfred Kirwa and Jackson Kivuva in the 800 metre men’s final.

Later in the afternoon, Mr Odinga flew to Kisumu to prepare for the first major “Yes” rally in the region where he enjoys fanatical following.

He spent time at the airport meeting local politicians before flying onward to his rural Bondo home where he was expected to spend the night.

Mr Odinga makes a comeback to the campaign trail that has seen President Kibaki engage in a whirlwind of rallies in the country that was never even witnessed during the 2005 referendum or the last general elections.

For the last two days, the President has addressed rallies in Webuye, Kakamega, Kapkatet and Suswa.

The PM’s absence from rallies also saw Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and deputy PM Uhuru Kenyatta engage a higher gear in their campaigns in Ukambani and Central Kenya to push for the “Yes” vote.

The “No” side led by Higher Education minister William Ruto has also in intensified its campaigns. On Fri day, Mr Ruto addressed 10 rallies in Ukambani.

Mr Odinga now returns as both sides in the referendum race are heading for the tape in a referendum which will be decided by Kenyans on Wednesday. He is expected to add to the gains of the “Yes” momentum in the few remaining rallies scheduled for Saturday, Sunday and Monday. There will be no campaigns on Tuesday.

In Kisumu, streets were teeming with supporters waving some of the posters the PM used in the 2007 election campaigns as they chanted their support for the constitution.