Lawyer Miguna Miguna has come to the defence of businessman Oketch Salah following public criticism over his association with the late former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.
Miguna says that in as much as he has never met or spoken with Salah, he believes the businessman does not deserve the public vilification he has been subjected to. He termed the attacks as “hypocritical, unreasonable and malicious”.
He noted that Raila was a powerful and well-protected leader during his lifetime, arguing that no one could have forced their way into his inner circle without his approval.
“Raila Amolo Odinga was a powerful, well connected, wealthy and influential politician who had heavily armed and well-trained bodyguards and aides at all times,” Miguna said.
“Unless Raila chose to be in the company of someone, there is no way that such a person could have forced himself on him.”
Miguna further stated that Salah was a familiar face and a close friend of Raila Odinga given the numerous pictures and videos of the two sharing light moments together.
“Out of 50 million Kenyans, Raila freely chose Oketch Salah to be his aide, confidant and friend,” he stated. “We have seen images and videos of Oketch Salah dancing, gallivanting and celebrating with Raila Odinga, Ida Odinga and other members of Raila’s family.”
This comes amid public uproar, with some questioning the sudden emergence of the self-proclaimed adopted son of Raila Odinga. Some have accused him of briefly appearing in Raila Odinga’s life to gain popularity and leverage the association to advance his political ambitions.
During an interview on Citizen TV on Tuesday night, EALA MP and Raila’s daughter Winnie Odinga, dismissed Salah’s assertions that he was among the people close to Raila during his last hours.
Winnie refuted the claims as misleading. She maintained that “nobody really knew him”.
“A flat-out lie that you were there at the time of my father’s death and you were not and talking about things that did not occur is quite dangerous and makes me question his intentions,” she said.
