Opposition leader Raila Odinga. [Photo/Raila Odinga]Opposition leader Raila Odinga was interviewed with Voice of America (VoA) where he insisted that he must be sworn in as Kenya's people's President, basing on the election results of August 8, 2017.Odinga who has been warned against his planned inauguration on January 30, maintained that the move is unstoppable and that he would be sworn in and form his cabinet even if it will be from exile."An illegitimate government is in office, and the one that the people actually wanted to be there is outside. On January 30, we will end this. We will be sworn in with the August 8 results that shows we won," said the opposition leader.According to him, a president operates and runs a government from anywhere.“We can even be a government in exile, one that works from outside. It has happened in other countries," he added during the Swahili interview from his Capitol Hill Offices on Tuesday.He warned that Kenyans can no longer allow an illegitimate government which was not elected by the people to rule them. "We will work like a government, we will form a Cabinet and we will work as a government."
According to Odinga, the swearing in will be held out of the country if the government makes it impossible to be held in Kenya (which he said is unlikely).“Should the government try to stop the intended swearing-in ceremony, then the only other option was to hold it outside the country."On Wednesday afternoon, several opposition MPs signed affidavits to support Odinga's swearing in.
In the exclusive television interview with VOA’s Swahili Service, Odinga denied criticism the threat to hold his own inauguration ceremony on January 30 is a tactic to negotiate for power with Kenyatta.“So, we’re not using the swearing-in as a basis of negotiating with Uhuru Kenyatta. We have said in fact that we don’t want any stake in Uhuru Kenyatta government. We want to be the ones who are in government," said the former prime minister.