Mudavadi faults Raila, Kalonzo on supporting Uhuru agenda

Amani National Congress leader Musalia Mudavadi (centre) and Butere MP Tindi Mwale (left) with members of the ANC Youth League in Nairobi. PHOTO | EVANS HABIL | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • Mr Mudavadi said all was well in having an alternative voice.
  • ANC rejected calls for a national unity government following the handshake.

Amani National Congress (ANC) party leader Musalia Mudavadi has termed as a “return to the dark days” talk of formation of a unity government, saying the opposition should instead remain vibrant to check on government excesses.

Mr Mudavadi, who has in the recent past fashioned himself as the voice of the opposition following Mr Raila Odinga’s deal with President Uhuru Kenyatta, said all was well in having an alternative voice.

“Opposition is important. Those who think that if you are in the opposition you are not patriotic are ignorant. In fact, you are unpatriotic if you try and kill the opposition. As it is, we can support an idea, but you do not have to troop to the government to support it,” Mr Mudavadi said on Wednesday when he opened the party’s youth centre at its headquarters in Lavington.

There has been a lot of concerns on the health of opposition politics following the March 9 deal that saw Mr Odinga pledge his support for President Kenyatta’s agenda, with his 2017 running mate Kalonzo Musyoka following suit last month.

HANDSHAKE

On Wednesday, ANC rejected calls for a national unity government following the handshake.

“The country has no need for a grand national unity government, and any such arrangement should not be formed to feed the appetites of individuals for power, or to kill democracy,” ANC said in a statement read by Youth leader Omulo Junior.

ANC, the party said, will be among “the 63 other political parties outside government” in a veiled attack on its counterparts in the National Super Alliance.

“Going forward, we will continue to participate actively in keeping the government on its toes. We oppose Cabinet reshuffles that seek to kill democracy. We also oppose any constitutional amendments that only seek to meet the power pursuits of individuals,” the party said in the hard-hitting statement.

BUILDING BRIDGES

In what Mr Mudavadi refused to discuss further, the party, in its statement, described the Uhuru-Raila handshake as “non-inclusive.”

“It is ironic that while the Building Bridges (handshake) nine-point proposal has inclusivity as one of the points of focus, the process itself is so far not inclusive. It is, therefore, a flawed process from the beginning, and its owners, especially President Kenyatta, must wake up to this glaring contradiction,” the party said.

The party called for the disbandment of the building bridges team, calling it “lame duck”.