Raila Odinga called off demonstrations in April and May after President William Ruto agreed to dialogue, but the talks broke down, with several demonstrations held this month.
NAIROBI - Opposition leader Raila Odinga told AFP Wednesday that he would not hold talks with President William Ruto without a third-party mediator after months of anti-government protests.
Late Tuesday, Ruto expressed his willingness to meet Odinga in a social media post addressing the opposition leader. "He is not somebody you can trust, he keeps changing words that is why I insist they must be a mediator between us," he said.Ruto has never publicly discussed the possibility of third-party mediation.
Accompanied by around two dozen opposition leaders and at least a hundred supporters, he later paid tribute to slain protesters, lighting candles and offering white roses "to the memory of the departed." Odinga, who says last year's presidential election was "stolen" from him, has blamed the government for a cost-of-living crisis and of "unprecedented police brutality" against protesters.
Ruto has repeatedly called for a halt to the protests and vowed to clamp down on any sign of "anarchy".
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