Azimio leaders give Ruto six days to meet demands

Azimio la Umoja leaders during a joint media briefing at SKL Centre, Karen on May 24, 2023. [ Jenipher Wachie, Standard] Azimio la Umoja leadership has given Kenya Kwanza six days to meet their demands failure to which they will withdraw from parliamentary talks. The coalition endorsed yesterday the decision by their delegation to walk out of the bipartisan talks until the government side agrees to deal with interim issues raised. In a meeting attended by Raila Odinga (ODM), Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper), Martha Karua (Narc-Kenya), DAP-K leader Eugene Wamalwa, Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni and the seven representatives to the bipartisan talks, the coalition said the opening of the IEBC server, reducing the cost of living and cessation of attacks on Jubilee and other political parties are not negotiable. In the resolutions read by Wamalwa at the SKM Command Centre in Nairobi, the leaders said they recognised the resolutions by Jubilee during the Special National Delegates Convention, including the change of leadership. They further demanded that the resolutions be respected and enforced by the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties. "Kenya Kwanza must make no mistake that Azimio la Umoja will do everything possible to protect its affiliate parties from these heinous attacks. We ask all Kenyans to join us in protecting multiparty democracy for which many Kenyans lost their lives," said Wamalwa. Azimio said Jubilee MPs who have crossed the floor and joined Kenya Kwanza must seek fresh mandate while those who hold their positions by virtue of their nomination by Azimio must relinquish the posts. Illegal schemes Wamalwa demanded that the Registrar of Political Parties Anne Nderitu leaves office in view of alleged clear manifestations that she has been co-opted into partisan and illegal schemes by Kenya Kwanza to cripple, instead of protecting, parties. The DAP-K leader said they have given authority to their team in the bipartisan talks to issue a notice of dissolution of the talks in the event Kenya Kwanza will not publicly accede to the interim measures. "Azimio la Umoja coalition party will communicate its next course of action at our Parliamentary Group meeting scheduled for Tuesday next week where we will give Kenyans direction on the way forward since we have participated in the bipartisan talks in good faith," he said. The DAP-K leader said their delegation came to the decision that if the interim measures cannot be guaranteed, there would be no need to move into substantive issues with a number of other issues having emerged from the talks. "The framework agreement that set up the talks provides for a seven-day suspension of talks in the event of stalemate and our delegation proceeded to invoke this provision, if at the end of the seven days we will not be able to resume, the talks will be considered to have collapsed," he said. Wamalwa said the Kenya Kwanza side is essentially several teams in one, with the seven-members answering to different bosses and getting different instructions. The leaders said the government has no clear direction on whether the talks should proceed, and they have no clear guidance from President William Ruto. Azimio believes Kenya Kwanza sees the talks as a process of managing the political situation, calming down temperatures and continuing with business as usual. "The destabilisation of the Jubilee Party is a do-or-die agenda, sponsored by the highest level of Kenya Kwanza leadership whose aim is to ensure Kenya Kwanza obtains a super majority in Parliament and amend the Constitution, remove presidential term limits, abolish devolution and remove the independence of constitutional commissions and place them as part of the Presidency," they said.

Azimio leaders give Ruto six days to meet demands

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Azimio leaders give Ruto six days to meet demands

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