Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) leader Raila Odinga on Saturday took a swipe at the decision by a section of African Heads of State to attend the ongoing Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit currently being held in Beijing, China.

Odinga while addressing a congregation in Bondo, Siaya County, claimed there was no justifiable reason for over 40 presidents to attend a summit in China.

The former Prime Minister instead, reiterated that it was the responsibility of the Chinese delegation to visit Africa if they wanted an audience with the continent's leaders. 

"I believe that Africa is punching below its weight and that Africa can do better. I have seen African leaders moving around like you see, I have just come from a summit dubbed FOCAC, where almost 40 heads of state were," Raila claimed.

"But I say, why should African leaders go to China? Chinese should be the ones coming to Africa, so these are some of the things that we want to reverse."

Raila while insisting on the matter, promised to make a raft of reforms within the continent once he is elected as the African Union Commission (AUC) Chairperson.

According to Odinga, despite Africa facing several challenges, it had the potential to become the most successful continent globally.

"Africa can punch at its level, and this is what I want to see. I have already said what I want to see in Africa and what Africa can do. Africa has been undermined, exploited but we do not want to continue whining," Raila stated. 

Odinga's sentiments come barely days after he was spotted attending the summit in China alongside President William Ruto and other Heads of State.

During their trip to Beijing, Raila and Ruto held a meeting with six African leaders as the duo sought to drum up support for Odinga's quest for the top continental role. 

"Met President Paul Kagame of Rwanda in Beijing, China, and deliberated on deepening our relations and also the candidature of Raila Odinga for the position of the African Union Commission chairperson," Ruto announced on his X platform.

Besides meeting President Paul Kagame, Ruto also also met presidents from Togo, Mali, Guinea Bissau, Chad and Zambia.