In response to allegations that President William Ruto's persistent backing for Raila Odinga during the 2007 elections caused him to be charged with war crimes in The Hague, Martha Karua, the leader of the Narc Kenya party, reprimanded Ruto.

PHOTO | COURTESY Karua tells Ruto he was not taken to ICC because of Raila

She was replying to the president's suggestion that Odinga should be grateful to him for supporting him to the point of being brought before the ICC to face charges over the weekend.

Wengi says, "Ni walimpigania kinara wetu na hawakupelekwa ICC. We are ulipelekwa kwa vitendo vyako sababu. Baba Raila, wacha kutaja. (Several individuals who fought for Raila were not brought to The Hague. Because of what you did, you were abducted," she said.

Karua, who at the time was supporting the Party of National Unity (PNU) campaign for the late Mwai Kibaki, questioned why other members of Odinga's Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party were not punished.

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"Back then, I backed previous President Mwai Kibaki, but I wasn't brought before the ICC. While pledging to continue with rallies on Monday organized by the Opposition against the high cost of living, the leader of the Narc-Kenya party, who served as Odinga's running mate in the August 2022 elections, added, "If I had done wrong, I'd have been with him over there."

PHOTO | COURTESY Ruto claimed that he was taken to ICC because of Raila

Since last Monday, Odinga has started holding protests to pressure the government into addressing the high cost of living and to denounce the alleged theft of his presidential victory in the elections that President Ruto won in August 2022.

Karua became the principal advocate for President Kibaki's side during the 2007 election campaign and the ensuing violence. During the elections, she alleged that the ODM, the party of rival presidential candidate Raila Odinga, engaged in "ethnic cleansing."

Ruto, the ODM deputy leader at the time, upheld the party line that the post-election violence, which resulted in more than 1,150 fatalities and 500,000 displaced people, was "spontaneous" and brought on by ongoing irregularities, claims of vote-rigging, and President Kibaki's quick swearing-in.