This archive report was first published on 28 November 2019.
On November 27, 2019, the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) report was launched at Bomas of Kenya, marking a significant moment in Kenya's history. The event brought together leaders from all political outfits, signaling a new era of unity and cooperation.
President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga, who had been sworn enemies, took the stage to share their experiences of the pre-handshake meetings. They revealed that it took 19 hours of deliberations to break the ice and agree on a common path forward.
"It's under those circumstances (of acrimony) that counsels of goodwill prevailed and we ended up me and the President having a conversation. It took 19 hours and it was not easy. Cause we had called each other all sorts of names. After all those long hours of deliberations we agreed that we had something we could put together," Raila said.
The event was a therapeutic moment for the nation, as leaders put aside their differences and spoke in one voice. The laughter that greeted their speeches was evidence that a country generally feels good when its leaders speak in harmony.
The camaraderie exhibited at Bomas and other places in the wake of the handshake between Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga is a global pace setter. It's a reminder that even in the face of adversity, leaders can come together and work towards a common goal.
