The Azimio la Umoja One Kenya Coalition leader Raila Odinga has received a major setback in his call for mass action following the withdrawal of the Jubilee Party and KANU from the plan.
This comes after Raila reiterated his calls for rallies to resist what he termed as the capture and emasculation of key institutions by the current administration.
The rallies were also meant to rally behind the four dissenting Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) commissioners President William Ruto suspended on Friday and formed a tribunal to probe their conduct.
Jubilee and KANU, which are constituent parties of the Azimio Coalition said they would not take part in the mass action Raila is calling for.
Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni said the party the mass action was not part of their agenda and they do not want chaos.
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“Jubilee does not advocate for chaos. It is not part of our agenda,” Kioni said.
However, Kioni maintained Jubilee is still firm in the Azimio coalition even as they play their oversight role.
“Jubilee is in Azimio, but that does not stop us from pushing our party’s agenda. We will support the government of the day and correct it on behalf of Kenyans,” Kioni added.
KANU Secretary General Nick Salat also said his party felt sidelined on grave matters concerning the coalition and therefore does not feel the need to join in Raila’s mass action.
Salat also disclosed KANU’s intentions to redefine the terms in the Coalition which he accused of only considering ODM and Wiper parties.
“We will not support that. We would love to but our treatment in the coalition does not allow us to do that,” Salat said.
“We are looking at redefining our relationship with Azimio. When it comes to inclusivity, the coalition only considers the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and Wiper.”
A section of the Azimio Coalition Parliamentary Group said that the call for mass action was divisive.
The withdrawal of Jubilee and KANU from the mass action has highlighted the cracks within the Azimio coalition.