New Year message: What Raila Odinga expects in 2020

ODM Party leader Raila Odinga has expressed hope that the government will intensify the fight against corruption in the coming New Year as well as address issues underscored in the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report.

In his New Year’s message issued on Tuesday, Mr. Odinga urged all Kenyans to unite against corruption, adding that he was looking forward to “a renewed commitment to fighting corruption and it’s unrelenting networks in the country.”

“We enter 2020 with much work to be done… I look forward to a renewed commitment to fighting corruption and it’s unrelenting networks in the country, ending marginalization of communities and regions and restructuring our foundations of governance, including strengthening of devolved units,” said Odinga.

The former premier noted that come next year, lords of corruption should carry their own crosses if the government is keen on making graft a “costly and useless venture.”

“By and large, Kenyans have agreed that individuals should carry their own crosses of graft. I thank our people for this and encourage them to carry this spirit into 2020 and beyond if we are to make corruption a costly and useless venture,” said Odinga.

In 2020, the ODM Party said he looks forward to “sharing ideas on, and supporting all efforts to address poverty, marginalization and unemployment of the youth and rising cost of living.”

“Unity for common good will be critical if we are to create a nation in which right is right and wrong. So far, unity has worked with the war on corruption,” he said.

Beyond Kenyan borders, Raila Odinga expects “continued engagement in continental affairs with regard to ensuring greater intra- Africa connectivity and trade through infrastructure.”

“I look forward to working with everyone in pursuit of these goals. Working together, we can make this New Year better than the old. A hopeful New Year to all Kenyans,” said Odinga.