President Ruto Warns Raila Against Staging Violent Street Demonstrations
President Ruto has warned the opposition against staging violent demonstrations to oppose the removal of the four IEBC commissioners who disowned the results of the August 9th presidential election.
This comes a day after Azimio La Umoja One Kenya coalition leader Raila Odinga announced they will hold countrywide public rallies from Wednesday to engage Kenyans on the bid to oust the four commissioners namely Juliana Cherera, Irene Masit, Francis Wanderi and Justus Nyang’aya.
"This regime is trying to send home the commissioners who stood firm on the platform of the truth and this is not acceptable. The people of Kenya are not going to accept it. These people stole the elections and we cannot accept that on top of that, they send away these other commissioners and impose on Kenyans a user-friendly commission to them," Odinga said in Kisumu.
On Monday, President Ruto welcomed criticism from the opposition but warned that street demonstrations may have a negative impact on the country’s economy.
"I want to tell our brothers in the opposition to work with us and criticise whatever they want to criticise, but let's keep the country peaceful. We want to do our job and we want the opposition to do their job, but they should do it peacefully," Ruto said during an opening ceremony for a Twiga Foods distribution facility at Tatu City in Ruiru, Kiambu County.
The president implored Odinga not to turn Kenyans against each other, saying the opposition leader’s "street fights work for nobody, not even for them.”
"I do not think organizing demonstrations and getting Kenyans to do the things they want to do is part of holding any government to account. want to encourage them not to hold Kenyans against one another. Street demonstrations and street fights should not be part of the script of any responsible opposition, unless they want to be a dictatorial opposition," he added.
The National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee is currently hearing the four ouster petitions filed against the four IEBC officials.