A phone call to President Uhuru Kenyatta by ODM leader Raila Odinga sealed DP William Ruto's fate in proposed talks that could later rescue the country from protracted chaos, it has emerged.
Before the Mrach 9th handshake, recalls Raila, handlers of President Uhuru had piled pressure on him to have the ODM leader arrested and charged with treason after the swearing-in.
"After the swearing-in, Uhuru was under pressure from his core supporters to arrest me and drag me to court on treason charges but he declined," he told enthusiastic supporters at Kitui.
The fear that the country could plunge into civil war forced Raila and Uhuru to swallow their prides and face the reality for the sake of peace.
And when Uhuru reached Raila on phone, the ODM leader would later return the call and rule out possibility of involving Ruto and other 2022 presidential aspirants in the talks.
" I gave my demands and he accepted that I will meet him alone. He also insisted that NASA co-principals are kept in darkness.
"When I demanded that he leaves out Ruto, he also asked me to leave out Kalonzo because they are interested in 2022," explained Raila.
At an interview on NTV last Sunday, Ruto dismissed claims that he was not aware of the secret talks between his boss and Raila.
So secretive was the handshake that Raila did not even reveal to his handlers, especially James Orengo, one of his trusted lieutenants.
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