Business owners said in the three Mondays CORD has demonstrated, they have incurred Sh80 million in losses. They said they were against today’s planned protest to push electoral commissioners out of office.
Kenya Private Sector Alliance (KEPSA) Chief Executive Officer Carol Kariuki yesterday called for an end to the weekly protests, saying they provided for a hostile environment in which businesses could not thrive.
“Businesses thrive in a politically stable environment and the riots are creating fear to businesses. So far, each of the Mondays that the protests took place businesses lost about Sh80 million,” said Kariuki.
Ms Kariuki emphasised the need to follow the law in dealing with the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) stalemate, saying that business confidence was pegged on the rule of law.
She said the Constitution provided mechanisms of dealing with IEBC issues, adding that both CORD and Jubilee should follow it to avoid confrontations.
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“When a country chooses and picks what laws to follow and not others it affects the business confidence, because traders worry if their investments will be protected by law. We believe in the rule of law and disruptions of businesses lead to closure and it’s the public that suffers for lack of jobs or goods and services,” she said.
Kennedy Migori, a mobile store owner in the Central Business District, said he was considering not reporting for work today as he fears vandalism.
“During the last protests, I saw shops being vandalised by people claiming to be CORD supporters and I have invested heavily in my business to take the risk of opening shop tomorrow (today),” said Mr Migori.
Anne Wanjiru, a manager at a city restaurant, said she expected a low turnout of customers. “Business on Mondays is usually slow especially since the protests began,” she said.
