KAA to review rules on VIP lounges after Raila airport drama

By JOHN NGIRACHU jngirachu@ke.nationmedia.com, Thursday, June 6  2013 

The Kenya Airports Authority is in the process of reviewing the rules on access to the lounges reserved for Very Important Persons, National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale has told MPs.

In a year, he said, a lounge for persons considered important to airline business will be set up and a vehicle provided for transporting VIPs to the planes.

Mr Duale made the statements in the National Assembly Thursday afternoon in response to a question from Rarieda MP Nicolas Gumbo.

He condemned the alleged mistreatment of former Prime Minister Raila Odinga at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport and apologised to him on behalf of Parliament.

He said Mr Odinga is entitled to use VIP II Lounge, which is reserved for use by ministers, diplomats, MPs, Senators and Governors among others.

"We respect our leaders, our former Prime Ministers, Vice Presidents and would not humiliate them in any way,” he said.

Mr Duale said last Monday, the former PM’s aides had tried to have his motorcade access to the airside- the part of the airport closest to the plane- and that had been prevented. (READ: Raila blocked from airport’s VIP lounge)

A similar attempt was made on Tuesday, said Mr Duale, and both times the Kenya Airports Authority had given Mr Odinga a security officer to ensure his passage through the airport is smooth.

But he was put on his defence by MPs from the former PM’s Orange Democratic Movement, who said he should be given access to the VIP lounge reserved for retired presidents and vice presidents.

“Some people in the Jubilee Government are excited and they are behaving as if they are drunk,” Mr Gumbo said, prompting the Speaker to ask him to moderate his statements.

MPs John Mbadi (Suba) and Dalmas Otieno (Rongo) suggested the alleged humiliation of Mr Odinga is an extension of the infighting that marked the life of the coalition government he partly headed.

“Sometimes you may not like someone but there is a good number of people who like him, who love him, who adore him,” said Mr Mbadi.

He asked the President and the Deputy President to “rein in the Secretary to the Cabinet Francis Kimemia and ask him to respect the former Prime Minister".

Mr Mbadi said it would be wrong to equate the former PM to MPs like him yet he was among those who fought for democracy in Kenya.

Mr Otieno said given that the former Constitution had to be changed to create the PM’s position for Mr Odinga, he should be recognised as an important person in Kenya.

The Majority Leader maintained the former PM will only be allowed to use the VIP II Lounge.

The rules on access to the lounges are in place to protect airports from terrorism and other crimes, he said, and Kenya needs to adhere to international rules and practices.

Failure to adhere to the rules, he said, and JKIA would be downgraded and blacklisted internationally. Mr Duale said the Deputy President and Designated State Officers Bill should be brought back and passed in the National Assembly so the benefits due to the former PM and the former Vice President can be set in the law.