President Uhuru Kenyatta’s criticism of the Opposition during his visit to Uganda has kicked up a storm, with Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) leaders accusing him of trying to divert attention from the failures of his administration.
CORD’s Moses Wetang’ula (Bungoma senator), Moses Kajwang’ (Homa Bay senator) , Boni Khalwale (Kakamega senator), Hassan Omar (Mombasa senator) and Peter Kaluma (Homa Bay MP) said the President has no moral authority to lecture them as he once abdicated his role as leader of official Opposition. As leader of official opposition in the ninth Parliament, they said, President Kenyatta opted to back President Mwai Kibaki’s re-election instead of running against him despite criticising his Narc administration.
“The President has no capacity to judge the Opposition or anybody for that matter, knowing the heavy historical and contemporary baggage he carries,” Wetang’ula said.
During his address at the Ugandan Parliament on Monday, President Kenyatta hit out at Opposition leaders, saying they risked turning into foreign lackeys for undermining democratically elected governments through their frequent criticism of those in power.
The President said the Opposition, who he accused of being petty during US President Barack Obama’s recent visit, “should be patriotic and loyal to the stability and effectiveness of the Government, even as it opposes policies and offers different remedies”.
The Opposition, he added, should not exploit democratic freedoms and its legitimate platform to try and delegitimise the Government and undermine the people’s will. But yesterday, the President appeared to tone down his stinging rebuke when he said Opposition parties should be allowed to air their political views freely. “It is our responsibility to soothe, not stifle, the loud voices and to encourage the quiet ones. It is our duty to hear our opponents’ arguments and to weigh them with an open mind,” he said (See story on page 2).
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Khalwale questioned the President’s experience in Opposition politics, saying as leader of official Opposition, he backed the then Kibaki’s re-election. “The President has never been in Opposition, save for 2003, when he contested for the Presidency on a Kanu ticket and lost to Kibaki. This was a short stint and he could not withstand the Opposition heat. He quietly crossed the floor and joined President Kibaki’s government,” said Khalwale. Kajwang’ termed the President’s public criticism of the Opposition as ill-advised. “It is hypocritical for the President to ask the Opposition to sweep issues under the carpet, yet when asked for dialogue, he dismisses us with contempt,” said the senator. Wetang’ula further said corruption will work against the Government in the 2017 elections.
“The next political contest will feed on fodder that Jubilee has generated. Let the President and his Jubilee answer the revelations of graft as detailed by the Auditor General instead of scheming to dismember the critical constitutional governance organs defending corruption suspects,” said Senator Omar said Obama never condemned the content by the Opposition, but rather its strategy. “He did not say the Jubilee government is doing extra-ordinarily well,” he said.
“The President should confront issues in his government such as corruption, ethnicity, gender inequality and isolation in the fight against terror as was cited by Obama during his speeches,” added Omar. He stressed that Kenya has a functional Opposition and the President should allow criticism to better his government instead of condemning the former’s work.
“State should concentrate on ending the runaway insecurity, graft and enactment of bad laws instead of focusing on cheap fights with the Opposition,” said Omar.
But Jubilee MPs Ndung’u Githenji (Tetu), Kabando wa Kabando (Mukurwe-ini), Yusuf Hassan (Kamukunji) and Mohammed Shidiye (lagdera) defended President Kenyatta on his remarks, saying the Opposition should not be quick to expose the country’s lapses to foreigners. “The Opposition should have put the country’s interest first by avoiding sideshows. The meeting with Obama should have focused more on pressing concerns than criticising State,” said Githenji.
“Obama recognised there is a legitimate government in place. The Opposition should have engaged the President on how to improve the economy and not our faults,” said Kabando.
