Sources intimated to the Star that all was set until Thursday night but Raila is said to have met a former political bigwig who reportedly dissuaded him from joining Ruto.
The bigwig and Ruto do not see eye to eye.
It remains unclear whether Raila will proceed with the deal, especially amid the sustained pressure from within his ODM party to abandon the idea.
Some leaders have warned the former PM that he risks ruining his legacy as a pro-people leader by accepting to join "a sinking" government.
Sources said that on Friday morning, Raila asked Ruto to give him more time to consult.
In the changes, President Ruto seeks to reinstate six Cabinet Secretaries who were among the 21 he sacked recently to quell anti-government protests.
“I have started the process of forming a new, broad-based Cabinet to assist me in driving the urgently needed and irreversible transformation of our country,” he said.
The President wants Prof Kithure Kindiki and Aden Duale retained in the Interior and Defence dockets they respectively held in Kenya Kwanza's maiden Cabinet.
President Ruto also seeks to reinstate Soipan Tuya and Alice Wahome in the Land and Environment dockets respectively.
Davis Chirchir could also return, albeit to be in charge of the Roads docket that was held by Kipchumba Murkomen.
MPs are expected to vet the nominees afresh when the House resumes regular sittings next week.
The President also made changes to several dockets that could dash the hopes of the CSs who expected to make a comeback.
Among those affected was the Health ministry where President Ruto has nominated Debra Mlongo as the Cabinet Secretary to replace Susan Nakhumicha.
Mlongo, according to her LinkedIn profile, is an infectious diseases expert at the World Health Organization. She holds a master's degree in internal medicine from the University of Nairobi.
Former ICT Cabinet Secretary Eliud Owalo’s fate also hangs in the balance with the nomination of Margaret Nyambura to the docket.
According to her LinkedIn profile, she is an information scientist with 20 years of experience in research and project management.
She holds a PhD in information systems, a master's in management science and a BSc in information sciences.
Former Attorney General Justin Muturi’s future in Cabinet is also uncertain after the President named Rebecca Miano to the post.
Miano was Investments, Trade and Industry Cabinet Secretary in the previous team, and is set to become the first female Attorney General of Kenya should MPs approve her appointment.
Also in unchartered waters is former Education Cabinet Secretary Ezekiel Machogu whose post has been handed to Julius Ogamba.
Dr Ogamba is presently chairman of Kenya Electricity Generation Company. He was Machogu's running mate in their botched Kisii governor bid in the 2022 elections.
The President named Dr Andrew Karanja as the new Agriculture Cabinet Secretary, a move that dashes Mithika Linturi’s hope of returning to the fold.
The immediate former Agriculture CS had a string of controversies, including an impeachment attempt, that rocked his tenure prior to his sacking on July 11.
The President also named Eric Muriithi as the new Water Cabinet Secretary to replace Zachary Njeru.
"Further consultations are ongoing after which I will announce more names in due course," Ruto said.
Earlier reports had indicated that Raila’s key lieutenants were to be part of the list but that is yet to be seen.
But even as President Ruto seeks to steer his ship back to a steady course, it remains to be seen whether his new picks will be accepted.
A poll published by research firm Tifa on Thursday indicated that the majority of Kenyans were opposed to a return of sacked CSs.
Only Kindiki, the poll showed, got the approval of 61 per cent of 1,507 respondents for reappointment. The rest were rated below 50 per cent.
Azimio parties including Wiper, Jubilee, DAP-K, PNU, and Narc Kenya restated on Friday that they would not board the Ruto-Raila train.
“We shall not participate in or support the proposed Kenya Kwanza-led broad-based government of national unity,” the leaders said in a statement delivered in Nairobi.
They said joining Ruto’s government would be a “betrayal of the Kenyan people, particularly Gen Z and Millennials, who have paid the ultimate price to rid this country of the disastrous Kenya Kwanza regime.”
The team comprising Kalonzo Musyoka, Martha Karua, Eugene Wamalwa, Peter Munya and Jeremiah Kioni dismissed the Cabinet changes as cosmetic.
“A Cabinet reorganisation and changing of officeholders will only be cosmetic,” they said.
“Should any of our members opt to join the proposed Kenya Kwanza-led broad-based government of national unity, we shall not be a party to that decision,” the Azimio top guns said.
The opposition figures maintained that they would side with the Gen Zs and the people when given an option where Kenya Kwanza is part of the choices.
President Ruto, however, said his doors were open for the consultations he is undertaking in efforts to restore Kenyans' trust in his administration.
“We are enhancing, broadening and deepening the national economic turnaround plan set out in the Bottom-Up Economic Transformation Agenda,” he said.
He said the talks would be centred on job creation, robust debt management, enhanced transparency and accountability in the use of public resources and enhanced domestic resource mobilisation.
The President said his team was keen on more perspectives on how to optimise public expenditure in the face of the ever-shrinking fiscal space.
For President Ruto, the recent events have created “an opportunity to craft a broad-based and inclusive citizen coalition made up of Kenyans from all walks of life.”
