Saba Saba will be peaceful, says Opposition

By Rawlings Otieno and Daniel Nzia; July 6th 2014
Saba Saba will be peaceful, says Opposition Raila Odinga, Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetangula arrive for CORD rally in Machakos Kenyatta Stadium on Sunday. (Photo: Boniface Okendo/Standard) Machakos, Kenya: Coalition for Reforms and Democracy ( CORD) leaders have warned that the Jubilee government will be held responsible should anything happen in Monday's Saba Saba rally at Uhuru Park.
The CORD luminaries said they have been holding people's consultative forums across the country peacefully and do not expect their supporters to cause chaos. And the CORD team led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga, Kalonzo musyoka and Moses Wetang'ula continued with their calls for the disbandment of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), accusing its members of having contributed to electoral fraud in the last General Election. "You all know what happened last year and we cannot go into another election with IEBC as currently constituted. We must have dialogue over the issues affecting Kenya," said Raila. The former premier called on Kenyans not to be afraid of Monday's rally saying Kenyans want peace and not violence. "Kenyans should not be afraid. There is nothing to fear. We have been holding several rallies in the country and we have been peaceful. I have heard they have sent 15,000 police officers yet there is insecurity in the country. For us our security is the people," said Raila. See also: Changing faces of the legendary Saba Saba rallies Raila maintained that the sovereignty of Kenya belongs to Kenyans and is exercised by people directly or by elected leaders. He said they have been traversing the country seeking Kenyans' views on the issues affecting them and wanted to come up with solutions to the problems. He warned the Government not to threaten them with arrests should anything happen during today's rally, saying the State should provide security to its citizens since that is their duty. The Opposition leaders cited the runaway insecurity which led to the death of over 20 people on Saturday night, saying the Inspector General of Police David Kimaiyo, CID Director Ndegwa Muhoro and Interior Cabinet Secretary Joseph ole Lenku should resign over their failure to protect Kenyans. Addressing the jubilant crowd at Kenyatta Stadium in Machakos County in the run-up to Monday's rally, the leaders said they have a reason to seek for answers to the challenges facing the country. "We are peace-loving Kenyans and tomorrow (Monday) we expect that we will hold dialogue with the people of Kenya to find the way forward," said Ford Kenya Leader Wetang'ula. He said everywhere they have gone, youths, farmers, people with disabilities and businessmen are all complaining of the high cost of living and doing business. "During the campaigns they said they would provide laptops and create employment for the youth. Walisema watasema na kutenda, siku hizi imekuwa kusema na kusahau (They said they will speak and act, but they have now resorted to speaking and forgetting)," said Wetang'ula. "The truth is that they have failed in their responsibility and therefore they should go home," added the Ford Kenya leader. Wiper leader and also CORD co-principal Kalonzo Musyoka accused the Government of refusing to dialogue yet there were problems facing majority of Kenyans. "Why is it that they would want to be averse to dialogue? Even the Bible says if there is a problem, then come we dialogue," said Kalonzo. He said no government has got more police officers than the people themselves who can protect themselves. Kalonzo said today would be a defining moment in Kenya's history, adding that people need to be liberated from the yoke of tribalism, corruption, bad governance and electoral fraud. The former Vice President appealed to the CORD supporters attending the rally to carry white handkerchiefs to symbolise peace, saying if anybody wished them bad lack, they would not succeed. Kalonzo said Siaya Senator James Orengo and other prominent lawyers would move to court to quash Justice Isaac Lenaola's order barring the CORD luminaries from calling for mass action. Homa Bay Senator Otieno Kajwang' wondered why President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto feared meeting with the Opposition. Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale accused the Government of sacking top public servants from certain communities and replacing them with others from one community. Mombasa Senator Hassan Omar said it is not possible to find peace unless we find solutions to injustices, adding that CORD's mission was to speak out for the oppressed. He told Uhuru to address the rising cases of ethnicity, nepotism, favouritism and land grabbing. Governors Julius Malombe of Kitui and his Makueni counterpart Prof Kivutha Kibwana reiterated that national dialogue was a must.