Mudavadi: I don't need Raila to win State House race

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi yesterday said he does not require ODM leader Raila Odinga's endorsement to clinch the presidency next year.

He said Kenyans are tired of political conmanship and deceit and will not elect leaders who malign others to ascend to power. He spoke at Chuugu Primary School in North Imenti, Meru county,  where several churches under EAPC converged for a service.

Mudavadi urged Raila to focus on selling his agenda and manifesto.

"He should tell Kenyans what he will do for them if elected, instead of concentrating on endorsement talk," he said.

He said Kenyans are wise to decide on their own the person they want to lead them after President Uhuru Kenyatta.

"There are men who are not able to buy clothes for their wives or give them money for the salon because the economy is in a deplorable state," he said.

Mudavadi defended the BBI, saying President Uhuru Kenyatta "cannot bring anything bad for the country after clinching presidency for two terms".

He was accompanied by Lugari MP Ayub Savula and Nairobi Senator Johnson Sakaja. He announced that he is the best suited to succeed Kenyatta because he has a record, as former finance minister, to lead an economic recovery.

He said likened himself to former President Mwai Kibaki, saying they shared a lot in common as both served as Finance ministers. He said he will rescue the crumbling economy if elected President.

Savula said the economy has been shattered by the Covid-19 crisis and only Mudavadi can revive it.

Sakaja said Mudavadi does not need anyone to step down for him. "We want them to stand. We will campaign and Kenyans will decide. In football, if you score a goal without a goalkeeper, it will lack meaning. We want to score against them competitively," Sakaja said.