Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has shed light on his party leader Raila Odinga’s new role in President William Ruto’s government, revealing that Raila was Ruto’s representative on high-profile matters pertaining to Kenya and the East African region.

While speaking during the funeral service of Dagoretti North Member of Parliament Beatrice Elachi’s son Elvis Murakana, Sifuna seemingly confirmed Raila’s enhanced status within the government that has seen him becoming Ruto’s right-hand man.

“On behalf of my party leader, Raila Odinga, who you know is outside the country on official national duty. They denied us the African Union Commission (Chairmanship) job, but we will still do that job because there is no one to do that job,” Sifuna stated.

This was especially after Ruto’s decision to appoint Raila as Kenya’s special envoy to South Sudan following the arrest of the country’s first Vice President, Riek Machar.

Raila Odinga with South Sudan President Salva Kiir during a meeting, March 28, 2025.

Photo

Raila Odinga

Odinga departed the country on Friday, March 28, to facilitate peace talks aimed at preventing further escalation of conflict in the war-torn country.

The development followed moments after the head of state spoke with South Sudan President Salva Kiir, his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.

The appointment of Raila came despite Ruto’s official role as the chairman of the East African Community (EAC) and his duty in steering the regional bloc towards deeper integration and cooperation among its member states.

As EAC chair,  Ruto's role involves providing strategic leadership to promote peace, stability, and economic growth within the East African region.

Despite Raila’s past experience in regional matters in his capacity as African Union High Representative for Infrastructure Development in Africa, the conflict in South Sudan presents a complex challenge in mediation and diplomacy. 

On one hand, if Raila succeeds in South Sudan, Ruto benefits by having overseen a successful diplomatic initiative; if it fails, Raila, as the envoy, shares in the responsibility. 

However, Ruto has also taken the personal initiative in ending the conflict in the war-torn South Sudan. In May 2024, he launched the Tumaini Initiative, a high-level mediation process aimed at ending conflict and political instability in South Sudan. 

Additionally, in March 2025, President Ruto engaged directly with both President Kiir and First Vice President Machar, urging them to embrace dialogue and work toward de-escalating the conflict.

Kenya has long participated in peacemaking efforts in South Sudan, with varying success, hosting key negotiations that led to the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement and the 2018 Revitalised Peace Agreement.

Before delegating Raila to the key role, Ruto seemingly demonstrated their growing camaraderie when the two shared a trip in February this year to visit Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni.

Reports indicated that the meeting focused on several key areas, such as energy and petroleum collaboration, particularly relating to the flow of petroleum products from Kenya to Uganda. Further, the three leaders discussed Raila’s candidature for the AUC position, which he later failed to win, and deeper integration within the EAC region.

The broader spectrum of all this can, however, be tied to the political partnership between the two leaders that began in July 2024 and was stamped into formality in March 2025.

Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna during the linkage between Political parties and Legislative agenda conference.

Parliament of Kenya