NAIROBI, Kenya Sept 24 – Azimio leader Raila Odinga’s bid for the African Union Chairmanship has continued to gather momentum after President William Ruto secured support from Senegal President Bassirou Diomaye Faye during a meeting in New York.
At 44, President Faye is the continent’s youngest leader, having been elected on March 24. He has prioritized fighting corruption, injustice, and poverty, promising “systemic changes” in his country.
A statement from the presidency noted that the meeting took place on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly.
Raila faces candidates from Djibouti, Mauritius, and Madagascar, all vying to succeed the outgoing Africa Union Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki.
The African Union Commission has invited candidates to apply for the positions of Chairperson, Deputy Chairperson, and six Commissioner posts ahead of elections scheduled for February 2025.
The race for the AUC position recently took a new shift after former Somalia Foreign Affairs Minister Fawzia Yusuf Adam dropped his bid to back Raila.
President William Ruto who arrived in New York on Saturday September 21 to attend the 79th United Nations General Assembly summit has been championing Raila’s bid to bag the seat.
Early this Month President Ruto met with 6 African presidents during his recent visit to Beijing China.
Ruto held talks with Presidents Faure Essozimna Gnassingbé of Togo, Assimi Goita of Mali, Paul Kagame of Rwanda, Umaro Sissoco Embalo of Guinea-Bissau, Mahamat Idriss Deby of Chad, and Hakainde Hichilema of Zambia to drum up support for the Azimio leader Raila Odinga’s African Union (AU) Commission candidature.
A section of youth leaders from thirteen African countries also endorsed Odinga’s candidature for the African Union (AU) Commission top seat.
In a statement, the youths under the Pan African Youth Convention and Cross-section of Africa Major Youth Stakeholder Groups described his vision for the continent as authentic.
They stated further that he refuses to shy away from the very real challenges facing the continent.
“He is optimistic, solid and fervent with a fire burning in his belly to cause progressive change across the continent. Indeed, he is honest and clear about what needs to be done and what the role of the AUC has to be to achieve,” they said in a statement.
“This is overwhelmingly keen to stand out to be counted and make that much awaited difference,” the statement indicated.
Source: capitalfm
