President Uhuru Kenyatta today said opposition leader Raila Odinga should drop his bid to complicate and delay the repeat presidential election because Kenyans want to move forward.
The President said the prolonged electioneering has affected businesses and the economy is already feeling the negative effects occasioned by the nullification of his victory.
Speaking in Gilgil town and Naivasha, President Kenyatta said the opposition leader should be ready for the repeat polls ordered by the courts and whose date has already been set by the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.
The President also asked the IEBC to prepare for the polls and should stop engaging with side shows being staged by the opposition.
“IEBC is an independent commission. You are not supposed to take instructions from me and certainly not from Raila. Prepare for the election so that Kenyans can once again exercise their right to choose their leader,” said the President.
“We are not interested in games and newspaper stories. We want you to tell us that you have prepared well for the election.”
President Kenyatta said Jubilee leaders and supporters have proved that they are peace loving Kenyans following the decision by the Supreme Court to nullify his clear victory.
He said he accepted to go back to the people because he obeys the law and wants stability for Kenya even though he did not agree with the decision of the judges who nullified the election.
“15 million Kenyans voted and everyone knew that we won. Four people decided their voice is bigger than the voice of 15 million Kenyans. If the court was just and if Raila has any dispute over the votes cast, the votes should have been recounted,” said the President.
The President said Kenya is lucky because the victory that was nullified was his and not Raila’s.
“If Raila was in my position, I am sure Kenyans would have been in trouble today,” said the President.
The President said the opposition leader is free to opt out of the repeat polls if he has developed cold feet. But he has no right, the Head of State pointed out, to give Kenyans conditions to be met before he participates in the elections.
He also reiterated that the Government will not allow anyone to interfere with the national examinations’ calendar. The President criticised the opposition leader for his insensitive comments over children who have been in school for years and have been preparing for exams whose date are fixed.
“You are a candidate and your job is to prepare for the election. I am the President and I care about the Kenyan children. They will do their exams on the scheduled dates,” said the President in response to the opposition leader who demanded that the date of the national exams be delayed so that the election date can be moved from October 17.
The President urged residents in Gilgil and Naivasha to remain peaceful and turn out in large numbers to vote on October 17.
Deputy President William Ruto said the President will win with a bigger margin than he did on August 8.
“We defeated you on August 8 and we will defeat you again with a bigger margin. The same Kenyans who rejected you on August 8 will do the same again,” the DP told the opposition leader. “We are doing Raila and his friends in the courts a favour by participating in the repeat elections because we won,” said the DP.
The DP asked IEBC chairman Wafula Chebukati to prepare for the elections without being distracted.
President Kenyatta and his deputy who earlier addressed supporters at Kapkatet, Kericho, where a co-principal of the opposition defected to Jubilee, were accompanied by many leaders including Nakuru Governor Lee Kinyanjui, Senate Majority Leader Kipchumba Murkomen among others
