Ajabu Africa News

PHOTO:

Cord leader Raila Odinga (left) has a word with Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria from TNA at the Ranalo Foods restaurant in Nairobi on June 21, 2016. PHOTO | JEFF ANGOTE | NATION MEDIA GROUP

By:

ISAAC ONGIRI

Posted:

Jun,21-2016 17:35:03

Cord leader Raila Odinga on Tuesday hosted seven of the eight members of Parliament detained recently over hate charges for lunch at a popular Nairobi food joint.

Among those at the spectacular lunchtime event at Ranalo Foods in Nairobi that pulled huge crowds was Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria and his Bahati counterpart Kimani Ngunjiri, both from TNA.

Cord members present were Machakos Senator Johnson Muthama and MPs Timothy Bosire (Kitutu Masaba) and Junet Mohammed (Suna East), as well as Woman Reps Aisha Jumwa (Kilifi) and Florence Mutua (Busia).

Mr Odinga said Kabete MP Ferdinand Waititu was at a funeral.

Mr Odinga's co-principals Kalonzo Musyoka (Wiper Democratic Party) and Moses Wetang'ula (Ford Kenya) were also present.

Mr Kuria and Mr Ngunjiri enjoyed the table of honour with Mr Odinga as they sat on his right and left, respectively. The TNA duo was accused of making pronouncements and engaging in activities seen to have slighted Mr Odinga while their Cord colleagues angrily reacted to the remarks.

Mr Kuria is alleged to have claimed that Mr Odinga should be shot dead, alluding to an assassination plot against the former Prime Minister, while Mr Ngunjiri attempted to evict the opposition leader from a restaurant in Nakuru, where he was holding an elders meeting.

Mr Odinga said the symbolic lunch with Mr Kuria, who has spent his time bad-mouthing him, was to show Kenyans reconciliation is important.

"Today, we have just met here as Kenyans," said Mr Odinga. "We want to stand in solidarity with our brothers who were incarcerated.

He said: "Police have no right to engage in prejudicial punishment when citizens are arrested. They should be allowed to enjoy the right to bail".

He decried the alleged brutality with which the eight MPs were treated and urged the government to move with speed to improve conditions in all police cells and prisons in Kenya.

The opposition chief tore into Gen (Rtd) Joseph Nkaissery, the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government.

"Honourable Nkaissery will go down in our history as the worst minister ever," said Mr Odinga. "He treats Kenyans like his military subordinates.

He asked the President to take action on Cabinet secretaries "who are embarrassing his government".

Saying he had forgiven both Mr Kuria and Mr Waititu for allegedly threatening an assassination against him and Mr Ngunjiri for attempting to disrupt his meeting in Nakuru, he urged the eight MPs to traverse the country preaching peace.

Mr Musyoka likened the treatment of the six male MPs at Pangani Police Station to that of the Kapenguria Six liberation heroes, on the IEBC issue.

"You remember how the Kapenguria Six fought for the liberation of this country; when they were released, Kenya's Independence became a reality," he said. "And now we have the Pangani Six; when they came out the issue of IEBC appear to have been resolved."

Mr Wetang'ula warned the government against uncalled-for threats to citizens and told Mr Nkaissery that he will not benefit from empty threats.

The MPs announced that they would hold a peace rally in Malindi on Friday as a way of reconciling Kenyans.

"We have asked (Kitutu Masaba MP Timothy) Bosire to table a Bill in Parliament to force the government to improve the state of our police cells," said Mr Kuria.