The heightened political temperatures in Kenya appear to be
escalating as the repeat Presidential election gets closer.
Over the weekend, NASA leader Raila Odinga fired some
sensational and direct insults to President Uhuru Kenyatta while addressing a
political rally in Busia.
In a rather uncharacteristic attack, Odinga alleged that
President Kenyatta was abusing drugs including alcohol and bhang that had made
the Jubilee leader supposedly lose his cool and threaten the Supreme Court
judges.
“Maraga alitupilia mbali ushindi wa Uhuru. Uhuru aliposikia
hivo akashikwa na hasira na kuruka ruka, akaenda akakunywa pombe mingi
sana…alafu akaongeza bangi macho yake ikawa nyekundu kama shati yake, (Maraga
nullified Uhuru’s win. When Uhuru heard that he got angry and started jumping
up and down, he went and drunk too much alcohol and then mixed it with bhang.
His eyes became as red as his shirt),”
Ndio akaanza kuruka ruka, akakemea Maraga akawaita
wakora…mumeiba ushindi wangu, mtakiona, mtaona cha mtema kuni. Wakenya ndio
wako na hasira na Uhuru na tunataka tumfunze adabu,”(That’s why he started
jumping up and down attacking Maraga…You have stolen my win, you will see, I
will teach you a lesson. Kenyans are the ones who are angry and we want to
discipline),” Odinga said in part of his speech.
The speech by the former Prime Minister marked the first time that Odinga had made a direct personal attack on the head of state.
While the talk of bhang and alcohol has been made before,
Odinga has previously made it without mentioning Kenyatta’s name which suggests
that the political competition between the two rivals will be bare-knuckled in
the coming days.
Here is the full video, (the words mentioned in this story
appear at 10.00)
