• Wanjigi said it was because Raila chose former President Uhuru Kenyatta as a political partner.
• He said from where he sat, he did not see how the two working together would make the future of Kenya better
Image: File
Safina Party leader Jimi Wanjigi has opened up on the reason he parted ways with Azimio leader Raila Odinga ahead of the 2022 general elections.
Speaking on Sunday, Wanjigi said it was because Raila chose former President Uhuru Kenyatta as a political partner.
He said from where he sat, he did not see how the two working together would make the future of Kenya better, given the economic crisis the country was in under Uhuru's leadership.
"When you talk about the divisions we might have had in 2022 because you are calling him a foe, he was not a foe, he just chose a partner called Uhuru Kenyatta which I could not reconcile with in terms of how that was the future of Kenya," he said on KTN News.
"This is where we had a problem and this problem started soon after the 2017 election."
He said that in February 2018, Raila was sworn in as the 'people's president' in a mock swearing-in but when he went for a handshake with Uhuru, they felt betrayed.
The businessman claimed that by having Raila as the people's president, they had put him above the constitution of the land, but he still chose a handshake with his nemesis who was 'now inferior to him.'
"We parted on that scope. We did not see why he went to a President of the Republic of Kenya when he was even above him," Wanjigi said.
"You need to understand the context of the people's president. When people elevate somebody to the people's president, he is above the principle of the land. We said the constitution is not being followed, the laws are not being followed, so the people have taken it into their own hands as they can, and elevated Raila to people's president."
Wanjigi narrated that their next step after the swearing in was to get Raila the office and had structured a way to make sure he took over State House but the Azimio leader went for a handshake.
He, however, noted that despite parting ways in 2022 and dancing to different political tunes, they have always been friends.
Wanjigi said their friendship dates back as far as 1991 when they first met.
After parting ways with Raila, Wanjigi went on to launch his presidential bid but was locked out of the race by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
His party did not meet the requisite requirements to participate in the presidential poll.