Opposition leader Raila Odinga of the National Super Alliance coalition speaks during an interview with Reuters in Nairobi, November 7, 2017. [Photo: NASA Comms]
Nasa leader Raila Odinga is known to be fond of giving international speeches especially at the Western European capitals and the US where he is accused of 'washing Kenya's dirty linen in public'.
Currently, he is in the US where on Thursday he delivered a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies at Washington DC where he talked about the just concluded Kenya presidential elections.
Before flying to Washington, Raila on Tuesday gave a lengthy interview to Reuters News Agency on the current Kenyan situation. And of course, his visit to London's Chatham House last month where he delivered a speech on democracy, elections and Rule of Law cannot be forgotten.
But why is Raila fond of these so-called international speeches? Well, the reason and the motive behind them could be many but we will just sample a few of them.
First, publicity. Raila's international speeches are known to be followed keenly locally than any other thing. What he said on the international 'dais' is not only followed by his supporters but by all Kenyans including government. These speeches he is always sure would make headlines locally for days.
Second, when he wants to make a point. When Raila has a point that he wants to be taken seriously, he knows the best place to pass it, is on such international platforms. When he speaks locally, sometimes he is misinterpreted and his speech trashed as mere 'vitendawilis and folk stories'.
Another thing is that perhaps Raila believes that when he makes his speech on the international platform, foreign governments would offer assistance by piling pressure on the Kenyan government to respond to his grievances.
Finally, as he is often accused, he is just unpatriotic and a puppet of the west. And in order to please his western masters, perhaps the best way for him is to go to the western capitals and portray Kenya in a negative light as much as possible. With that, he can continue receiving foreign funding to 'effect regime change'.