By FRED OLUOCH

More by this Author

Despite calls for dialogue between Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga before the slated October 26 presidential election, the two held parallel functions to mark Heroes Day on October 20.

President Kenyatta who presided over Mashujaa Day (Heroes Day) at Nairobi’s Uhuru Park told Mr Odinga that his government will not tolerate chaos during the fresh election.

Mr Odinga has called for his supporters to hold countrywide protests on the day.

In his speech to the nation on Friday, President Kenyatta said the country held its second peaceful election since 2007, when the country experienced post-election violence, and that the government will not allow a repeat of the painful past where lives and properties were lost.

“We vowed never to repeat the regrettable events that almost sank us. We must, therefore, wake up and say ‘no’ to any misleading leader out to plunge Kenya into chaos. Kenyans have the choice and means of resisting such leaders and their evil schemes, and should do it now,” President Kenyatta said.

He asked Kenyans to exercise their democratic rights on October 26 without fear because the government is ready to counter any threats to national security during and after the election.

“The law will apply equally to all regardless of social class, political position, and no one will be spared. For those who thrive on chaos and relish anarchy, your days are numbered; the law will take its course and sanction you accordingly,” the president added.  

Memorial service

Mr Odinga, who marked the Heroes Day by attending a memorial service and fundraising in Bondo and Kisumu in western Kenya for the families of his supporters who were killed during the demonstration for reforms in the electoral body, maintained that there would be no election on October 26.

In Bondo, Mr Odinga called for the unity of ethnic groups, and asked his supporters not to take revenge on the basis of ethnicity.

“Do not attack innocent people. That Kikuyu businessman here in Bondo is innocent. They have nothing to with what we are facing today. Please… please… please…please. No one, no Kikuyu, should be punished for the sins of Uhuru. If God punishes him, it will be him alone,” he said.

“All Kenyans are together. Everywhere I go, they call me Baba, don’t you see? I went to a funeral in Kiambu, the people there called me Baba before him [Uhuru Kenyatta]. So, it is not the people, it is a few leaders who are causing the problem.”

Mr Odinga maintained that he would not participate in the election because the playing field in not level.

He said he would address the nation on October 25 on the “way forward” to end the current political crisis, which he termed a “surprise.”

He honoured those who fought for the return of multi-party democracy in Kenya in the early 1990s, commonly known as the “Second Liberation.”