Nasa co-principal Raila Odinga denied that he had been poisoned when he was admitted at Karen Hospital, Nairobi, on Tuesday night.
In a statement issued last night, the Opposition leader said he had suffered food poisoning.
“This is not the same thing as being poisoned,” Mr Odinga said. “I know many Kenyans encounter this problem from time to time.
“It can cause quite a scare and, indeed, it did to me.
“I thank the medical personnel who attended to me and diagnosed the problem correctly and fast at Karen Hospital, leading to quick recovery.”
The former Prime Minister is scheduled to leave for South Africa Friday to attend to ailing second-born daughter Rosemary, according to his spokesman Dennis Onyango.
The ODM party leader cancelled an address at the Governors’ Conference scheduled for today afternoon at the Kenya Wildlife Service Training Institute in Naivasha, Nakuru County, so as to prepare for the South Africa trip.
Prof Anyang’ Nyong’o, the Kisumu senator, read Mr Odinga’s speech at the conference.
The trip to South Africa has nothing to do with the food poisoning, an aide said.
Mr Odinga added in the statement: “I wish to sincerely thank all Kenyans for the prayers, messages of solidarity, sympathy, love and support on learning of my brief hospitalisation yesterday.
“I continue to count on your prayers but my thoughts and prayers right now are with the many individuals and families that are also struggling with different ailments in different locations across our country.
“I am hopeful that, with our prayers, God will come through for them as He did for me.”
Mr Odinga was taken ill while attending a Nasa meeting with his co-principals Musalia Mudavadi, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetang’ula at a club in Karen.
“The situation looked really scary, so it was decided that he be taken to Karen Hospital, which was the nearest hospital,” an aide said.
Mr Mudavadi, Mr Musyoka and Mr Wetang’ula called off the meeting.
Rosemary has been in a South African hospital for over a week, suffering from a brain tumour, even though doctors said it is not life-threatening.
She is with her mother Ida and younger sister Winnie.
It was not clear when Mr Odinga and the members of his family will return to the country.
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