By LUCAS BARASA lbarassa@ke.nationmedia.com
Posted Sunday, February 19 2012 at 22:30
Posted Sunday, February 19 2012 at 22:30
They shared a hearty laugh and a sumptuous meal during a dinner hosted for visiting Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni at Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s home in Bondo. (READ: PM to host Museveni in Kisumu)
But hours after the Saturday event, the aides of Mr Odinga and his deputy, Mr Musalia Mudavadi, were escalating their rivalry in the race for the ODM presidential ticket.
Mr Mudavadi’s press secretary, Mr Kibisu Kabatesi, accused the PM’s team of sending out a dispatch to media houses which, he claimed, insinuated that the deputy PM attended the dinner as an ODM member and that President Museveni attempted to mediate between the two.
Mr Mudavadi has rejected an attempt by some ODM leaders to drop out of the race in favour of Mr Odinga.
It appears his camp saw the PMPS dispatch as putting pressure on him by suggesting that Mr Museveni preferred Mr Odinga as the ODM flag bearer.
“President Museveni was hosted to an official dinner by the PM. Mr Mudavadi attended the dinner in his capacity as the DPM and minister in the Government of Kenya. It had nothing to do with current politics in Kenya,” he said.
Mr Kabatesi said the dispatch by Mr Odinga’s spokesman, Mr Dennis Onyango, was “in bad taste” and “propagandist journalism to purport to represent what you are not privy to, especially when you are not a mind-reader peeping through the window,” he said.
It all started at 8.53am on Sunday when the PMPS sent photographs taken during the function showing Mr Odinga and Mr Mudavadi having a hearty laugh.
In his dispatch, Mr Onyango noted the camaraderie between his boss and the Local Government Minister “in spite of the two battling for the ODM presidential ticket”.
He said the jovial talk between Mr Mudavadi and Mr Odinga “left a strong impression that the two leaders may be following each other’s campaigns closely and the talk of tension between them may be a misunderstanding of their plans.”
Mr Mudavadi, he said, flew into Kisumu from a meeting with delegates in Kitui and travelled to Mr Odinga’s home where he joined Cabinet ministers Anyang’ Nyong’o, James Orengo, and Musa Sirma and assistant ministers Magerer Lang’at and Alfred Khang’ati.
“The two leaders took moments off engaging with the Ugandan president and the ministers present, and went into deep talks between themselves before settling down for dinner,” Mr Onyango said.
Mr Kabatesi sent his own dispatch at 3.12pm, accusing Mr Odinga’s press team of attempting to throw a spin on the dinner event.
He said Mr Onyango’s statement insinuated other motives other than what the meeting was about — a dinner.
Mr Mudavadi continues with his campaign in Kiambu on Monday where he is expected to meet 540 delegates.
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