‘We shall not engage on personal or private issues’ – Kenya Kwanza tells Azimio ahead of talks
Kenya Kwanza has responded to the Azimio la Umoja-One Kenya coalition party over the scheduled talks that were supposed to begin on Monday, August 7, 2023.
In a letter addressed to Azimio dialogue team leader, Kimani Ichung'wah, the dialogue team leader for Kenya Kwanza, requested that the talks begin on Thursday, August 10, 2023.
"We seek the indulgence of your team on the invitation to a meeting on Monday 7th August 2023. While appreciating the urgency to embark on the talks, it is worth noting that having just constituted our team, we had a scheduled debrief on Monday with our team in order to prepare for the talks and a further engagement with the Bi-Partisan team and their assisting counsels on Tuesday 8th August 2023. We therefore seek your kind indulgence and propose that we schedule a joint first meeting on Thursday 10th August 2023 at 10am," Ichung'wah stated.
Ichung'wah also stated that the meetings should be held in public spaces to reduce cost of organising the meetings.
"Considering that the Kenya Kwanza administration is on record committing to the Kenyan people to check on excessive borrowing that has previously led to reckless accumulation of public debt, cognizant of the prevailing economic conditions and the need for austerity measures both at individual and collective level, with the view of mitigating the high cost of living, we respectfully request your team to allow the two teams to schedule our meetings at public venues such as County Hall which I would be happy to engage the Parliamentary Service Commission to make available or in the alternative at the School of Government- Kabete," he added.
"It is our considered view that these are venues that will not occasion any additional expenditure to the public and which would otherwise be available for such public meetings at little or no cost to us or to the Kenyan taxpayers as opposed to the luxurious five-star Serena Hotel-Nairobi. In any case, since we are only discussing matters that concern the people of Kenya, we believe such matters should be in open public spaces."
Ichung'wah added that the Kenya Kwanza team will not be available to engage on any issues that are of personal or private nature.
"We will not participate in any manner on any issue that undermines any arm of government or undermines any decisions that have been made thereof by any arm of government or undermines our laws and the Constitution," he added.
Initially, Kenya Kwanza presented five issues of discussion, which excluded the cost of living.
The issues are the reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), implementation of 2/3 gender rule, entrenchment of Constituency Development Fund (CDF), establishment and the entrenchment of the Office of the Leader of the Opposition, and embedment of the Office of Prime Cabinet Secretary.
On the other hand, Azimio listed the cost of living as a priority in the talks.
Other issues are audit of the 2022 Presidential Election Results, restructuring and reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) and related matters, measures to prevent interference with political parties, and outstanding constitutional matters (governance issues, adequate checks and balances and questions of boundaries delimitation).
