PS Sing’Oei: We’re ready to submit Raila’s AUC bid

By Peter Ochieng

The government of Kenya is making final touches, before submitting its bid for the African Union Commission (AUC) chairmanship.

The current AUC chair Moussa Faki Mahamat is nearing the end of his second and last term in office, with elections for his successor set for February, 2025.

With the coin being tossed in favour of the East Africa region to produce the next AUC chairman, Kenya is fronting former Prime Minister Raila Odinga’s candidature.

According to Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary (PS) Korir Sing’Oei, President William Ruto’s administration has made major progress, in as far as the preparatory processes of submitting Raila’s bid is concerned.

“All-Set-Go,” Sing’Oei said on Saturday. The submission deadline is 6th August, 2024.

The PSs alert came days after Odinga spoke of a possibility to drop his AUC bid, ‘for the sake of the country.’

"I am ready to forgo my AUC ambitions for the sake of my country if this is being used to manipulate me at the expense of the quest for a better and stable country," said the ODM party leader.

He spoke at the height of youth-led protests against President Ruto’s Kenya Kwanza regime, after Kenyans told him off for supporting dialogue with the government of the day.

Narc Kenya leader Maratha Karua supported Odinga, urging him to drop out of the AUC race if he was being arm-twisted by politicians in both the government and opposition circles.

"To his credit, he has said he is even ready to forfeit his candidature at AUC which means he has now freed himself from being arm-twisted. He has said nothing is more important than the great country, he said he doesn't want to go to AU...this now brings the opposition together," said Karua.

Several African Heads of State and Governments have declared support for Odinga’s UAC chairmanship bid. They include Uganda’s Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, Tanzania’s Samia Suluhu Hassan, Rwanda’s Paul Kamage and South Sudan’s Slavar Kiir.

The AU will apply the principle of inter-regional rotation in the election slated for February 2025, giving a chance to fourteen States in the Eastern bloc to produce the Commission Chairperson.

The Northern bloc will produce a Deputy Chairperson while Central, Southern, and Western regions will submit at least two candidates (one female and one male) for the six Commissioner portfolios.