Mwangi wa Iria urges Ruto to soften his stance, talk to Raila
Former Murang’a Governor Mwangi wa Iria has urged President William Ruto to soften his stance, agree to dialogue with opposition leader Raila Odinga and save the country from plunging into chaos.
Iria said being the President, Ruto ought to act swiftly and restore calmness in the country.
Addressing the media in Murang’a, the former county boss said only dialogue can save the country from plunging into violence witnessed in the country after the disputed 2007 polls.
He said having a dialogue does not necessarily mean that the two should have a handshake similar to Raila's political truce with former President Uhuru Kenyatta in March 2018.
He said the talks will go a long way in addressing issues affecting the people.
“Ruto being the head of state ought to know that all people are looking up to him to restore normalcy in the country,” he said.
Iria noted that President Ruto ought to take charge of the country’s leadership and protect his legacy.
According to Iria, the head of state should ignore the opposition's talks that the Kenya Kwanza government is illegitimate and serve the country as he was validly elected.
“I know Ruto very well and he cannot orchestrate some of the things we are seeing, there are people who have planned it all but they want him implicated,” he said.
He said the anti-government protests called by the opposition chief have put the country at a crossfire and no matter how much the leaders try to ignore this, it sets a bad precedence for the country.
“We have two groups exchanging weapons, one group with sophisticated weapons and full combat gear and others with stones and crude weapons and they are running after each other in the streets. This is what we call the war in plain unedited language,” he remarked.
“I heard a church was set ablaze, a replica of what happened in 2007 and this clearly shows the fire is back whether we like it or not and I fail to understand if as the country we have forgotten where we have come from,” he added.
He castigated the move by the rowdy gang which invaded the Northland farm associated with the Kenyatta family, saying the attack was a recipe for anarchy.
He also said the church has also lost its voice on this matter as there are only isolated distant voices from very few leaders and the elders who ought to provide guidance to the leadership have gone mum.
“We are sacrificing this country as we watch and it’s time to speak out before things get out of control,” Iria added.
The former county boss said should dialogue among the leaders fail, the international community should chip in to help quell the situation.
He, however, suggested the International Criminal Court should also train its eyes on the leaders who are inciting people into violence and have them charged.
“There are some leaders who believe that for you to lead this country, you must incite people into violence and cause bloodshed which is unacceptable,” he remarked.
“Ruto and Uhuru have been to The Hague but they were exonerated because they were innocent, but this won’t be the case for everyone who sparks fire and unrest in the county” he added.
