Odinga’s AU Chairmanship Bid Ends in Defeat

[Deeq A.]

Odinga’s experience and stature have done little to dispel doubts over his commitment to the African Union Charter.

Addis Ababa (PP News Desk) — The candidacy of Raila Odinga for the African Union Chairmanship ended today after Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, the Foreign Minister of Djibouti, won the selection.

The outcome stunned analysts who had surmised that Youssouf had stood no chance of defeating Odinga, an elder African statesman, for the AU Chairmanship.

Experience and stature have not proven advantageous for Odinga, whose commitment to the African Union Charter has been called into question. In 2016, at Chatham House, Raila Odinga expressed support for the secession claims of the Somaliland administration. “I am myself a strong supporter of the recognition of Somaliland, and I have said so without fear or contradiction” said Odinga. He claimed that he was one of the first leaders to visit Somaliland “when Mohamed [Ibrahim], Egal was still alive… and I know the history of the union between the South and Somaliland.”

Odinga’s pro-secession stance put him at odds with Djibouti, a country renowned for its role in reconstituting the state in Somalia by organising successive reconciliation conferences for Somali political stakeholders between 1991 and 2008.

President William Ruto of Kenya accompanied Odinga to the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, where the selection for the AU Chairmanship was taking place. “While the outcome of this election did not favour Kenya’s candidate, I wish to convey my deepest gratitude to the entire leadership of our great continent” tweeted President Ruto.

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