Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta is no longer reachable on his line, Sudanese-British philanthropist Mo Ibrahim has claimed.
Speaking Saturday during a one-on-one conversation with President William Ruto, Ibrahim said he tried reaching him for "lunch" but could not find him, an indication he changed his phone number.
"Uhuru, my other brother, unfortunately, changed his mobile number, I cannot reach him," he said amidst laughter from a crowd.
"Uhuru, if you hear us here, please give me a call," he added.
He was responding to a question from Ruto on why he was yet to approach him (Uhuru) and Azimio leader Raila Odinga yet they are his friends.
"Since these are your friends why can't you reach out to them and have a conversation?" Ruto posed.
His remarks excited the crowd as Ibrahim quickly downplayed it saying, "No, you are all my friends".
He, however, disclosed he has already reached out to Raila but was yet to confirm his availability for the lunch.
"I already reached out to our brother Raila, I have invited him to come and have lunch...a great lunch, but I am yet to get a confirmation yet, I would like to meet him," he said.
According to Ibrahim, dialogue was the only solution to ending the political squabbles in the country.
He said the escalating differences were unhealthy to the country more so on the economy.
"I am not a Kenyan, but maybe it is much easier for me to say this, please guys, you have kids who need education, you have people who need food and who need jobs, let us work for the Kenyan people," he said.
Ibrahim said while he is not party to the Kenyan issues, he was ready to meet the top leaders for a talk over it.
"We need to find a way to really hug and talk, all that is happening is hot air," he advised.
The billionaire businessman is in the country for the Ibrahim Governance Weekend (IGW).
Earlier on, Ibrahim held a similar discussion with former Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok and World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala.
AU chair Moussa Faki, EU Council President Charles Michel and UN deputy secretary general Amina Mohamed are among those who attended the summit.
The one-to-one conversations between Ibrahim and his guests themed Global Africa were aimed at exploring a range of topics and the key challenges facing the continent.
At the same time, the head of state called for more deliberation on the management of the African Union (AU).
He said it was regrettable that in this era, African countries still rely on European nations for support, especially on internal conflicts.
"Today we cannot even support Somalia. We are waiting for the EU to give us $85 million. It is madness. Are you telling me 54 countries, 60 years after independence cannot manage $85 million to support Somalia?” he questioned.
“We have the wrong architecture in the management of the African Union (AU). The AU Commission Chairman cannot do very little because we have retained all the powers as heads of state and yet you cannot run one country and run the continent of Africa."
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