By Wangui Ngechu, Citizen Digital
CORD leader Raila Odinga has termed the Nakuru thanksgiving rally by President Uhuru Kenyatta and DP William Ruto as a mockery to the dead and the surviving victims of the 2007/08 post-election violence.
Odinga, who now wants the Jubilee government to call off the rally, also wants the President to make the Waki Report public saying that this will not only vindicate him and his ODM party from accusations of having fixed Ruto at the ICC but will let the people deal with what he termed as “the ICC ghosts and exorcise them from their national psyches”.
In a statement to newsrooms from Paris, France where he is attending a meeting of the Emerging Markets Forum, the former Premier says that instead of celebrating the end of the pursuit of justice over the atrocities of the mayhem in 2007/08, the President and his DP should lead the nation towards a truth and reconciliation process to avert future post election violence cases.
“We must admit that the collapse of the ICC engagement with the Kenya situation denied this country the only chance it had to end the culture of impunity that has condemned us to an orgy of violence with every election.”
“We need truth and reconciliation among our communities. We can’t sweep these realities under the carpet and move on. We must bring people together to talk and make peace. This has been done successfully in South Africa and Rwanda and we have seen it bring lasting peace.”
This statement comes just a day ahead of the much anticipated thanksgiving Ceremony at the AfrahaStadium in Nakuru.
While making the announcement of Saturday’s celebrations just moments after the ICC ruling, President Kenyatta welcomed the decision saying that it brought a close to what he termed as the “a nightmare for my nation”.
The Head of State, however, indicated that the victory in this matter is partial and that the quest for justice is incomplete as many victims still await justice and perpetrators are yet to be brought to account.
“With the conclusion of this case at the ICC, our country is fully back on focus to enhance our efforts towards nation building, promotion peace and security.”
Thursday, CORD leader Raila Odinga faulted the ICC for dismissing cases against President Kenyatta and DP Ruto.
In an article published on international agency AFP, Raila was quoted saying that “ICC allowed itself to be blackmailed by Kenya through the AU (African Union) that African states are going to pull out because you are trying African heads of state,”
The CORD coalition leader, however, called on African countries to backtrack on their urge to withdraw from ICC saying doing so will perpetuate crimes against humanity in the continent.
“There is no alternative mechanism in Africa to deal with these cases and secondly Africa is the biggest violator currently of human rights. Africa needs ICC more than any part of the world,” he said.
Earlier this month, the ICC declared the proceedings of the case against Deputy President William Ruto and Journalist Joshua arap Sang as a mistrial due to what the court termed as “a troubling incidence of witness interference and intolerable political meddling.”
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