When it seemed like it was about to exit the stage, a vocal Rift Valley Member of Parliament has revived the debate on political debt, this time aiming his gun at Nyanza region.
Bomet legislator Christopher Langat now wants opposition leader Raila Odinga to shelve his ambition for the presidency and support Deputy President William Ruto in 2022.
Speaking on Saturday, the MP, who is a close ally of the DP, said Nyanza must rally behind Ruto's bid to succeed President Uhuru Kenyatta as a way of expressing gratitude for the massive support Rift Valley gave Raila in the disputed 2007 election where he rose to the powerful position of Prime Minister.
"We love our neighbours, the Luo community, but let nobody lie to you that hakuna deni (there’s no debt). A promise is a debt and has to be paid," Langat said as quoted by Nation.
"We supported you overwhelmingly in 2007, something that led our son to The Hague. We are now asking you to return the favour come 2022," he added, speaking at Moi Sitotwet Secondary School.
The legislator's remarks come at a time his colleagues from the Rift have been demanding that voters in Mount Kenya must back DP's bid to 'repay' him for supporting President Kenyatta in the last two elections.
The sentiments have elicited mixed reactions in the populous region, with some leaders pledging to support Ruto while others insist there is no debt to be paid.
However, the DP has dismissed the debate as unnecessary, saying no person or community owes him any debt.
"No community owes anyone any debt in the 2022 race. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law," he said early this month.