Demos and graft accusations won’t give you votes, MPs tell CORD

Six MPs drawn from the Jubilee Party (JP) on have accused the Opposition of politicizing the war on graft.

Speaking on Sunday October 30 at the African Inland Church (AIC) Mung’ala in Machakos Town Constituency, the legislators said that the Opposition’s demands for President Uhuru Kenyatta’s resignation were unrealistic.

Embu Senator Lenny Kivuti said that the established independent constitutional institutions are capable of dealing with graft, since the law has mandated them to execute such functions.

“President Uhuru Kenyatta is executing his duties as the Head of State, and should therefore not be dragged into issues that must be looked into by established constitutional bodies such as the Ethics and Anticorruption Commission (EACC), the Directorate of Public Prosecutions, the Attorney General’s office and even the Directorate of Criminal Investigations,” said Kivuti.

The senator warned that calls for the President to resign over alleged corruption at Afya House would not be of any help to Kenyans and the country at large.

His sentiments were echoed by Meru County Member of Parliament (MP), Florence Kajuju who lashed out at the opposition for threatening to call for demos over corruption.

“Those threatening to call for demonstrations are misleading the citizens of this country and we know that they (Opposition) always thrive in demos and anarchy,” she said.

Kajuju said that those in the Opposition should respect the President, and stop issuing inflammatory statements that could spark public disorder.

MP for Machakos Town, Victor Munyaka, claimed the Opposition was using the war on corruption to settle political scores, which he said was retrogressive.

“It is sad when some people use all their energy calling for the resignation of a hard-working President who has allowed constitutional institutions the space to carry out their mandate uninterrupted,” he said.

MP Ol Joro Orok Constituency, John Wainganjo said that what the Opposition was calling for is not applicable in the circumstances, because the President cannot perform duties of independent institutions.

“Independent institutions established by the constitution must be granted the opportunity to work and therefore Raila Odinga and his team must appreciate that fact,” said Wainganjo.

Wainganjo said it was wrong for the Opposition to begin calling for mass protests at a time when the country was gearing up for a general election.

“We want free and fair elections. Free from violence, destruction of property and devoid of bloodshed,” he said.

MP, Masinga Constituency Benson Itwiku Mbai also spoke on the matter and said, “We cannot sacrifice the head of State just because an officer in the Ministry or department has engaged in corruption, and those who indulged in the corrupt deals must be dealt with exclusively.”