Raila Odinga has set up a campaign secretariat and is putting the final touches on aspects of his campaign eight months before the general elections as part of a strategy to beat President Uhuru.
The 14-member campaign committee, which largely excludes his traditional advisers, is already up and running. It is holding regular meetings at the secretariat in a suburb west of the capital.
The team is headed by University of Nairobi don Adams Oloo. It’s members are from business, politicians and the civil society who meet frequently in Nairobi and brief Mr Odinga every week on his strengths and weaknesses.
It is said to be behind Raila’s renewed onslaught on the Jubilee government on reports of corruption in high places. It has divided the country into 14 distinct regions according to the Bomas Draft Constitution of 2005 defeated in a referendum that year.
They have come up with a budget of about Sh.15 billion. They plan to raise it in the first quarter of 2017.
To eliminate chances of foul play in the August 8 vote, his handlers are investing millions of shillings on a result tallying and relaying system expected to arrive from a European country early next year.
Former chief of staff at the prime minister’s office Caroli Omondi who was the custodian of Mr Odinga’s campaign funds in 2013 polls said, “Money is to politics what a mother’s milk is to the baby.”
Mr Omondi highlighted areas that gobble much of such cash.
“Branding which involves stuff like t-shirts, caps, posters. Logistics, where you buy and hire vehicles as well as choppers and financial support to party candidates for all the seats and from across the country take a lot of cash,” he said.
Putting their budget at a conservative figure of Sh5 billion in 2013, Mr Omondi revealed that he bought a total of 25 landcruisers and tens of others which were hired.
It is also being reported that Mr. Odinga has been reaching out to his old allies around the globe for financial and material support.
Keen not to jeopardise the efforts towards an inclusive opposition outfit, Mr Odinga has chosen not to publicise the activities of his campaign team. This would be the fourth time Mr Odinga hopes to run for president should he be picked as the candidate.
At the same time, he is careful not to be held hostage by protracted negotiations towards such an alliance that he told this paper last month would be akin to Narc, which they had in 2002 under President Mwai Kibaki and which blocked President Uhuru Kenyatta fronted by Kanu from succeeding President Daniel Moi.
