Mau Forest: Bitter dispute that shattered first Raila, Ruto alliance

After the disputed 2007 General Election—during which incumbent President Mwai Kibaki was hastily sworn in— and the establishment of the compromise Grand Coalition Government, the relationship between then Prime Minister Raila Odinga and Cabinet Minister William Ruto began to steadily deteriorate.

Once close allies, the two had forged a strong working relationship as early as 2005. Both men were highly opinionated and commanded near-cult-like followings, making them a formidable political force.

Their political paths first crossed around 2001 when Raila dissolved his National Democratic Party (NDP) and merged it with KANU, the then-ruling party.

By 2005, they had once again joined forces, this time under the Orange banner during the constitutional referendum campaign.

Their shared passion for grassroots mobilisation only strengthened their partnership, setting the stage for the 2007 General Election.

At the time, Ruto was widely regarded as Raila’s right-hand man. He played a pivotal role in delivering the vote-rich Rift Valley, which overwhelmingly backed Raila’s bid to unseat Kibaki.

When the election descended into a crisis amid allegations of electoral malpractices, Ruto was at the forefront of calls for a review of the results—actions that would later see him face charges at the International Criminal Court for his alleged role in the 2008 post-election violence.

Fault lines

In his tribute to Raila, published in The Standard on Thursday, President Ruto recalled:

“It was after 1997 that I got a chance to work with Odinga in tightening the working cooperation between NDP and KANU. It was immediately clear that we had a number of fundamental characteristics in common—his energy, sharp focus, total commitment, and unstoppable motivation in pursuing what he believed in.”

Ironically, it was these very similarities that would eventually become the fault lines that fractured their political partnership. The most defining rift emerged in 2009 over the Mau Forest restoration programme. A critical water catchment area, the Mau Forest had suffered extensive destruction due to human settlement.

While the forest occupation dated back to 1979, encroachment intensified in the 1990s when the World Bank encouraged the settlement of the Ogiek community. However, political interests soon hijacked the process.

Parts of the forest were subsequently de-gazetted and allocated to various beneficiaries, including politically connected individuals.

Although the restoration initiative—estimated to cost Sh37 billion—had begun during Kibaki’s first term in 2005, Raila’s decision to take charge of the process as Prime Minister proved to be the proverbial last straw.

President Kibaki tasked Raila with overseeing the eviction and regeneration exercise.

“I urge the Prime Minister to do all he can to reclaim the forest lost to private individuals and developers,” Kibaki said in August 2009.

Political analysts argue that this decision cost Raila crucial support in the Rift Valley during the 2013 General Election.

Many Rift Valley leaders, then elected under the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) banner, viewed Raila as a traitor. He had, during the 2007 campaigns, assured locals that no such evictions would take place.

Critics accused Raila of turning against the very people who had voted, and even died, for him.

Nonetheless, Raila and members of the executive pressed ahead with the evictions, showing little inclination towards compensation. His team argued that settlers in other forests, such as the Aberdares, had been removed without compensation, and that the Mau settlers would not receive preferential treatment.

Ruto, however, took a different stance. He criticised the government’s failure to compensate previous evictees.

“Those evicted should never have been left by the roadside,” he said.

At the time, Ruto—a Cabinet Minister and an emerging political kingpin in the Rift Valley—said he was prepared to sever ties with Raila if the mass evictions continued.

He claimed the Mau issue was being used to unfairly vilify the Kalenjin community.

The outcry by Rift Valley MPs prompted then Finance Minister Uhuru Kenyatta to enter the debate. Uhuru said he was seeking funds to compensate settlers holding title deeds and promised that evictions would be carried out humanely.

Despite this Cabinet resolution, the issue remained a major source of friction between Raila and Ruto.

As tensions escalated, Rift Valley leaders began to snub Raila during his visits to the region.

The deepening rift alarmed senior figures within ODM, who feared the collapse of the party’s influential ‘Pentagon’. Calls for reconciliation grew louder.

“The wrangling leaders should know that ODM has unfinished business. We need each other to reach our destination,” said then Water Minister Charity Ngilu in August 2009.

But Raila remained resolute. In a August 19, 2009 interview with KTN, he dismissed the backlash and insisted that conservation efforts must not be politicised.

“Kenya is more important than any individual. If I am to pay the political price for conserving the environment, so be it,” he said.

A decade later, in 2019, Raila and Ruto were still trading barbs over the Mau evictions. Raila even credited his handshake with President Uhuru Kenyatta for enabling renewed conservation efforts.

“I said then that I was ready to pay the price for protecting the Mau Forest. I told Kenyans that I was ready to go and sell mandazi in Kibera, and I’m glad evictions were done,” Raila stated.

Many believe the Mau Forest controversy reshaped the relationship between the two leaders, setting them on opposing political paths for over a decade—until 2023, when Raila began working with Ruto in the wake of the Gen Z protests.

Even then, political observers described their renewed association as lukewarm, a far cry from the strong alliance they once shared.

Raila died last Wednesday while undergoing treatment in India.