Raila points finger at envoys for meddling in political stalemate

Raila has said Kenya is independent and does not need the advice of the envoys. [File, Standard]

National Super Alliance (NASA) leader Raila Odinga has termed the recent attempts by eleven foreign envoys to broker a political dialogue as a deliberate attempt to introduce neo-colonialism in Kenya.  

Raila accused the diplomats of hypocrisy and turning a blind eye to the electoral reforms that they advocated for before the October 26, 2017 repeat polls.

“When IEBC chair Wafula Chebukati announced that his commission was not ready to conduct elections as there were division among the commissioners, they (envoys) said they were satisfied of the preparations,” Raila Odinga.

The diplomats among them Robert Godec (United States), Nic Hailey (United Kingdom), Alison Chartres (Germany) and Sara Hradecky from Canada asked NASA to recognise the election of President Uhuru Kenyatta as a legitimate expression of the people’s will before a dialogue takes place.

They called on the Opposition to accept that as the basis for dialogue that many Kenyans wanted.

“We are concerned not because not because we presume to dictate how Kenyans should regulate their country’s affairs- we don’t,” the envoys statement read in part.

It added, “But as fellow democracies, we know our freedoms and rights were hard won, and how carefully we must cherish, strengthen and protect them if our nations are to thrive and prosper”.

Raila further accused them (envoys) of only being keen in their business interests and not the issues affecting Kenyans.

“They say they want to do business, their aim is to see how they will do business in Kenya before grabbing the proceeds back their homes. They are not concerned with democracy,” said Raila.

Fire Victims

He was speaking at a road side rally outside Kijiji Village in Lang’ata after visiting the victims of the Southlands Kijiji fire that claimed five lives and left over 6000 homeless a fortnight ago.

“He went to the Command Post at Ngei Primary School and handed four hundred mattresses and four hundred blankets,” said Deputy Director and Communication Officer National Disaster Management Unit Pius Masai.

Some of the mattresses donated by Raila Odinga [Courtesy]

The gutted slum has been at the centre of a land grabbing controversy with some alleging that the recent fire was caused by arson.

There has been protracted attempts to evict the residents from the land for four decades to pave way for private developers.

A narrative that Opposition Chief Raila Odinga also shared.

“We hear that this was a ploy by some people to grab this land. We know who the land grabbers are, we will not allow them to succeed in their plot,” Raila insisted.

Recently, the victims of the slum fire rejected a county plan that would have seen rebuilding of new structures begin.

Area chairman Abdulahi Ahmed had contested the plan by the county planning department over a contention of the proposed accessed roads.

Ahmed says the area only needed three access roads and not the 23 proposed by the county.