Azimio will not reject results if it loses presidential race, says Murathe
Azimio-One Kenya Coalition will not reject the outcome of the August 9 presidential election if it loses.
Jubilee Party vice-chairman David Murathe also hinted that the coalition would ask its presidential candidate Raila Odinga to consider legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes if he is elected president.
But Roots Party presidential candidate George Wajackoyah, who has pledged to legalize the drug if he wins, accused Azimio of copying his ideas.
Murathe (pictured) said if the election is conducted flawlessly by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC), Raila will have no reason to contest the outcome.
Glaring issues
“I can guarantee you because I am in Azimio: If we lose this election, we will not go shouting that it was rigged. We will not unless there are glaring issues of manipulation by the IEBC,” Murathe said during an interview with a local TV station.
He added: “Raila is now on the side that does not know how to reject elections. We will have agents who will be conveying the results to us and what we will be having does not tally with what the commission has, then we will ask questions.”
Murathe, a close ally of President Uhuru Kenyatta, said that if the figures given by IEBC tally with those of their agents, they will concede defeat.
Wajackoyah factor
Asked whether the President was prepared to leave office, Murathe responded: “ The President cannot wait to leave. He cannot wait to finish and that is why he is in a hurry to finish some of his pledges and promises …”
On whether Wajackoyah was a threat to Azimio, Murathe said the election remained a two-horse race.
“Dida came with the same hype and gusto but he could not even amass 100,000 votes,” Murathe said in reference to the 2013 presidential candidate Abduba Dida.
He, however, said the Roots Party candidate was likely to affect the Kenya Kwanza side, saying those who are excited by his message were in the age bracket that is seen to back Ruto.
“He is definitely not hurting our corner. If he were to change any dynamic, it is the Ruto’s corner.”
