NASA: We are not witch hunting companies

NASA Leaders led by Raila Odinga and his Co-Principal Musalia Mudavadi address the media at Okoa Kenya Offices in Nairobi on Tuesday 31/10/17 [photo:Boniface Okendo,Standard]

The National Super Alliance (Nasa) has defended its move of rallying Kenyans to boycott products and services of three major companies saying it is not on a witch hunt of businesses.

The coalition’s co-principal Musalia Mudavadi hinted that though there is a possibility of naming more companies later, it has to be a well calculated move.

Last week, Nasa came out and asked their supporters not to seek services and products from Kenya’s largest telco Safaricom, milk processing giant Brookside and Bidco known for its range of cooking oils and home products.

While Nasa had already made it clear that Safaricom was allegedly involved in electoral malpractice of the August 8 exercise as it was contracted to transmit the results, Musalia has restrained himself from disclosing what was the involvement of the two other companies in the polls.

“That will come out in different ways. Everything will come out at its own time. What we want is this country to be free of electoral injustice,” he said.

Musalia insisted that the boycott move only seeks to make Kenyans aware of electoral injustices even as the coalition is expected to name more companies.

“This is not a witch hunt. This is well thought out process which requires careful consideration and thoughts and we have to justify to the public on why we are really concerned,” said Musalia.

Musalia said that their product boycott spearheaded by a newly unveiled National Resistance Movement (NRM) arm under the coalition is out to ensure fairness and electoral justice for posterity.

He said people have raised queries on Safariom’s role of transmission of results and if whether they are happy that whatever they transmitted was correct.

“We want a situation where tomorrow and many years to come, if a child is born in any part of this country, whether in Kisii or Mandera or KIlgoris; and they wish to be president of this republic, their vote must never be stolen,” Musalia said.

Speaking at one of Airtel’s shops, the second largest telco service provider, where he went to acquire a new sim card in protest against Safaricom, Musalia said no one should point fingers of blame to Nasa on the country’s situation.

“What we need to send out here is that Nasa did not subvert the electoral process. The people who have a role to play to ensure fairness should actually focus on the Independent Electoral and Boundary Commission (IEBC).”

He added: “I think the more the issues are hidden under the carpet, the more we realize that institutions like IEBC will continue being manipulated to subvert electoral justice in this country.”

At the shop located in Nairobi’s Koinange Street, Musalia was accompanied by Opposition leader Raila Odinga, 2017 Nairobi gubernatorial aspirant Miguna Miguna, former Machakos Senator Johnstone Muthama and former Kakamega Senator Boni Khalwale, who all came to change telco service providers.

 Musalia said they are ready to stretch the resistance as long as Kenyans resolve will determine.

“If Kenyans want to remain passive so that bad things are done to them and they do nothing about it then it will take longer. But if Kenyans want people to be accountable; for institutions to be accountable then it will be shorter,” he said.

The Amani National Congress (ANC) party leader went ahead to criticize the Jubilee administration for coming up with awkward policies that have chocked small business among them the interest rate cap laws which have made banks shy away from lending to this category.

He brushed off claims from the Safaricom Dealers Association (SDA) that the boycott will lead to loss of one million jobs.

“Look, this is the same economy. If they migrate from one outfit to another they will still be creating jobs,” he argued.

Musalia called for patience from their supporters as they await the announced people’s assemblies at the grassroot level-aimed to pile pressure on the Jubilee government-to take effect.

“This is not instant coffee. Kenyans will work systematically on issues so they have to be rational. And they will be rational,” he said.?