We will fix this country, Uhuru and Raila pledge

President Uhuru Kenyatta has said he and opposition leader Raila Odinga will fix problems ailing the country for the common good of all Kenyans.

The President yesterday said their new-found unity with Raila was real and would not be shaken.

“We have resolved that there is no turning back from national unity, reconciliation and forgiveness,” said the President.

Speaking in Seme, Kisumu County during the burial of Mama Dorcas Nyong’o, mother of Kisumu Governor Anyang’ Nyong’o, the President told Kenyans to brace for changes in government.

“We will have a new Kenya which is all-inclusive. No community will again feel excluded from the national leadership of this country,” he said.

He asked Kenyans to shun retrogressive politics and focus on developing the country. 

“We want to see parties with the face of Kenya and not face of communities,” the President said.

He said Kenyans want peaceful co-existence with one another devoid of ethnic bias or prejudice.

“We don’t need to focus on the big agenda now. Let’s fix the problems identified as a stumbling block to our national unity. This is why we want to finish tribalism,” he said.

The President said he wants a Kenya that is peaceful, prosperous and does not know ethnic boundaries.

He assured investors that they were out to create a new country, where investors can stay up to 20 years and beyond without any fear. The President brushed aside requests by Siaya Senator James Orengo to name an heir to his position by saying that his immediate priority was to “fix Kenya”.

Raila, on the other hand, continued his push for a referendum.

“Kenyans have a problem about their economic destiny and they are ready to fight for a better tomorrow,” Raila said. “That is why we beat a hasty retreat and formed BBI (Building Bridges Initiative) to reconcile Kenyans. We want to rid Kenya off graft to restore sanity and economic growth.”

Corruption and church

He told the government to tame corruption and ensure the culprits are arrested and prosecuted.

Raila said the church had “become a haven for money laundering” and urged clerics to stop accepting proceeds of corruption. 

National Assembly Minority Leader John Mbadi said the opposition was fully behind President Kenyatta’s push for the Big 4 agenda and the fight against corruption.

Orengo told the President that he will be greatly remembered for his “compassionate and instrumental leadership that has transcended ethnicity”.

“Our prayers is that you ride on the political goodwill and the resounding unity to give Kenyans a new constitutional order that will uphold the much hyped national inclusivity,” said the Senate minority leader.

Ford Kenya leader Moses Wetang’ula echoed the spirit of national unity and asked Kenyans to rededicate themselves to the unity goal.

“Let us be each other’s keeper and strong defenders of peace, justice and love because without unity Kenya will not prosper,” said Wetang’ula.

Makueni Governor Kivutha Kibwana told President Kenyatta and Raila that expectations and hope among Kenyans were high and they should continue to work together to unite the people.

After the funeral, the President and Raila toured the Kisumu Port.

He inspected the grounded cargo ship, MV Uhuru, and the dry dock.

The Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) had been given Sh500 million in the ending financial year to start the renovation of the port.

He visited the port early this year when he ordered its dredging and removal of the water hyacinth.