State House has termed media reports that ODM MPs snubbed a meeting with President William Ruto on Monday as misleading.
State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohammed, who also termed the articles as mischievous and baseless, said the MPs had not been invited to a formal meeting by the President, as reported.
“State House communicates or invites MPs or any other individual or groups through official channels,” Mohammed said on X.
The reports in the dailies suggested that key MPs allied to former Prime Minister Raila Odinga deliberately missed a formal meeting with Ruto.
The State House has swiftly clarified the sequence of events and refuted the claims.
The truth, according to the statement, is that on Monday, September 9, 2024, President Ruto was inspecting the progress of the Kibera Soweto East Zone B Affordable Housing Project, which aims to deliver 4,054 units to Nairobi residents.
“After the event, the MPs in attendance joined the President for an informal lunch at State House. Contrary to the newspaper report, State House confirmed that no formal meeting took place,” Mohammed said.
The three who met Ruto were George Aladwa (Makadara), Beatrice Elachi (Dagoretti North) and Esther Passaris (Nairobi MP).
Media reports suggested there is a silent rebellion within ODM, stemming from fears of backlash among supporters, who may view the truce between Raila and Ruto as compromising the party's core values.
Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, however, said he received an invite but termed it disrespectful.
“First of all, the President has no powers to convene members of ODM. Secondly, as a legislator, I find it repugnant to the doctrine of separation of powers for a President to summon us to State House,” Sifuna told the Star.
“I found the invitation extremely disrespectful and ill-motivated to perpetuate nefarious political ends.”
