Isaac Rutto: Raila once wanted me to be NASA’s Presidential candidate in 2017

Former Bomet Governor and current Judicial Service Commission (JSC) Vice Chairperson Isaac Rutto has revealed that the late ODM leader Raila Odinga once offered to step aside for him to become the NASA presidential candidate ahead of the 2017 General Election.

According to Rutto, the surprising proposal came on the eve of NASA’s major rally at Uhuru Park, where the opposition coalition was expected to unveil its flagbearer.

“In 2017, I was one of the principals in NASA, the others being Raila, Musalia Mudavadi, Moses Wetang’ula, and Kalonzo Musyoka,” Rutto recounted during a public event on Thursday.

“On the last Friday before we went to Uhuru Park, Raila and Kalonzo, because they were disagreeing, told me they would announce me as the compromise presidential candidate. I refused, but they insisted, saying, ‘Relax, kesho tukutane Uhuru Park.’”

Rutto said he was so taken aback by the suggestion that he could not bring himself to share the news even with his family. 

“I could not even tell my wife that I was now the presidential candidate, because I had not persuaded myself,” he said.

He revealed that the following morning, he called the NASA principals for a brief meeting before heading to Uhuru Park.

It was then that he advised them to rally behind Raila as the most suitable flag bearer.

“I told them, gentlemen, let’s just all agree that Raila is the best candidate. If we don’t do that and you go to the park and say it is Isaac Rutto, I will take the microphone and announce that I am handing it over to Raila,” Rutto said.

The former governor remembered the late Raila for what he described as rare humility and selflessness in leadership, noting that the veteran politician had taught him valuable lessons about unity and nationhood.

The former prime minister, who was laid to rest last Sunday at his Siaya home, died on October 15 in India.

“Raila, strangely, never quite got the presidency no matter what, but he would also give up possibilities of clinching that office,” Rutto observed. 

"He never pushed the country beyond what it could hold. That is a mark of true statesmanship.”

He added that Raila’s gesture in 2017 was a defining moment for him, reinforcing the importance of national cohesion over personal ambition.

“He even asked me to run instead of him, yet I had never declared I wanted to be president. That was selflessness on the part of Raila Odinga. And I think my colleagues, Kalonzo Musyoka, Wetang’ula, and Mudavadi can confirm this,” Rutto said.

The disclosure sheds new light on the behind-the-scenes negotiations that shaped NASA’s 2017 campaign, portraying Raila as a leader willing to sacrifice personal ambition for political unity.

NASA was a political coalition formed in January 2017 as a united front to challenge President Uhuru Kenyatta’s Jubilee Party in the August 2017 General Election. 

The alliance brought together five key opposition leaders- Raila Odinga of ODM, Kalonzo Musyoka of Wiper, Musalia Mudavadi of ANC, Moses Wetang’ula of Ford-Kenya, and Isaac Rutto of Chama Cha Mashinani (CCM).

NASA’s formation followed months of negotiations among the opposition parties seeking to consolidate their support bases and avoid splitting votes. 

The coalition’s primary agenda was to push for electoral reforms, social justice, and inclusive governance.

Raila was eventually named the presidential candidate with Kalonzo as his running mate. 

Despite a spirited campaign and widespread support, NASA lost to Jubilee amid claims of vote rigging, prompting a brief boycott of the repeat election later that year. 

The alliance later disintegrated over internal divisions.