The founding father of the nation the late Mzee Jomo Kenyatta considered former Vice President the late Jaramogi Odinga Oginga a threat to his government.
Kenyatta used to send the then minister in charge of Prime Minister’s Office, Joseph Murumbi “as a sort of watchdog” whenever Odinga left the country.
Odinga’s trips to Russia and China left Kenyatta a restless man in power. The close ties he had with foreign nation always put him on toes.
Documents prepared on July 31, 1964, from the CIA’s Office of Current Intelligence, show that Odinga had connections in government. He was among the most informed politicians within the government during the reign of Kenyatta.
The first president ensured that he always remained at the top of power all the time. He used spies to trace the footsteps of Oginga as he was worried that he is likely to stage a coup against him.
“Odinga has used these various sources of power interchangeably or simultaneously to operate just as he pleases, placing supporters where he wants them, running roughshod through the domains of other ministers and frequently presenting Kenyatta with accomplished facts which the latter is unwilling or unable to reverse,” reads part of the documents quoted by the Standard.
Odinga and Kenyatta’s rivalry escalated in 1969 after they engaged in a war of words.
Odinga was later arrested and detained after the incident.