General Ogolla, Ruto were good friends, Joel Rabuku dismisses tension rumours

Fallen Chief of the Defence Forces Francis Ogolla’s son, Joel Rabuku. [File, Standard]

The fallen Chief of the Defence Forces Francis Ogolla’s son, Joel Rabuku has dismissed rumours of rivalry between his father and President William Ruto.

This comes amid unestablished reports that the departed General had made attempts to alter the 2022 General Elections results.

In his speech during the service before the burial at Senator Obama Primary School in Ng’iya, Siaya County, Rabuku said that his father had confessed to their friendship with the head of state.

“The General did not indulge in any national security issues. After his appointment, the two (the president and the General) became friends and had a good working chemistry. The friendship extended to the Deputy President and the Cabinet Secretary of Defence,” Rabuku said.

“I saw someone share a picture of the president looking sad and claiming that he is pretending. I had talks with my father and he was very happy of the friendship he had with his bosses. I know the president’s sadness was genuine,” he added.

Additionally, the departed General’s son has asked bloggers to report issues objectively and sensitively.

He has discouraged the culture of non-mainstream media from breaking death news before it is officially announced.

“On Thursday, mum called me and told me that my father had gone down with a plane while on duty. A few minutes later, I see bloggers sharing photos of a burning plane and saying the General has died. The president had not announced. I don’t want to mention names but the media, please talk to these bloggers,” Rabuku has said.

Following the General's demise, Rabuku vowed to take over his father's works of compassion by rehabilitating schools, building churches and sinking boreholes for the community.

“I discussed with the President and his Deputy and told them about my plan to start a project to improve the lives of Nyanza. I plan to rehabilitate schools, build churches, and provide water in the next two, or three years. Politicians make so much noise with no results,” he said.

“My dad once took me to Luo leaders graves like Jaramogi, Robert Ouko, Achieng Oneko and others. I want to change the lives of the people of Nyanza, and I am not interested in politics. I am just asking for support to change the area. I had plans to start with Pap Nyadiel around here but since we are here, I will start with Senator Obama,”

However, Siaya Senator Oburu Oginga has reiterated the need for investigating the cause of the Thursday crash that claimed the life of CDF Francis Ogolla and nine other officers.

Oburu was attending the event on behalf of former President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

He says the reason why most Kenyans are demanding answers on the death of the General is because the region has witnessed a number of their people being assassinated and that previous regimes convinced families of assassinated leaders to be protective.

Therefore, he urged Rabuku to allow for investigations to be conducted to establish the cause of the chopper crash.

Former vice president Kalonzo Musyoka has urged President William Ruto to give Kenyans the cause of the accident.

“His death goes beyond our sister Aileen and her two children. It is a national issue and that is why Kenyans want answers on the death. We just want the outcome of the investigations made public,” Kalonzo says