President Uhuru Kenyatta has accused NASA co-principal Raila Odinga of being at the centre of 2007/8 post-election violence.
The violence that followed a disputed poll left at least 1,300 dead and more than 600,000 homeless.
“Raila has again started inciting Kenyans as he did in 2007 thus framing DP William Ruto. Yeye ndiyo aliwasha moto (He is the one who ignited the fire,” Uhuru said.
“Kenyans are not ready to enter into chaos again because of politics. Raila and NASA are taking Kenya back.”
Uhuru said the Opposition chief promoted politics of tribal antagonism and had returned to this in the run up to the August poll.
“He promoted politics of what he called ’40 tribes against one’. Now, he is talking about ’40 against two’,” he said during a tour of Kisii town on Wednesday.
He issued the remarks after addressing Abagusii leaders in a meeting where he laid out plans to improve infrastructure in Kisii and Nyamira counties.
Uhuru dismissed claims that Jubilee has left some communities out of government.
“We need to catch up and fill the 25-year gap this country lost due to negative politics,” he said.
He said Kenya would have been at the same economic level as Asian Tigers “were it not for the 25 years of bad politics fronted by Raila”.
“They are part of the lost years when politics and government yielded nothing for the people,’’ he said.
Uhuru further said the development challenges Kenya has faced are not as result of lack of money but divisive politics.
He asked the public to embrace unity and reject those who continue dividing them.
“Let us ensure we do not slide back into problems. Do not let anyone tell you that Kenyans cannot forgive each other,” said the President.
Regarding his bid for re-election, Uhuru said he won the presidency in 2013 despite not being in government.
“If we defeated them easily the last time when they were big people in government, we will defeat them easily again this time round,” he said.
Among leaders who attended the meeting included Ruto, MPs Joel Onyancha (Bomachoge Borabu), Jimmy Angwenyi (Kitutu Chache North) and Mary Otara,
Others were legislators Stephen Manoti (Bobasi), Elijah Moindi (Nyaribari Masaba) and Zebedeo Opore (Bonchari), and members of the Abagusii Council of Elders.
During the chaos, retired president Mwai Kibaki’s PNU and Raila’s ODM traded accusations of genocide.
The standoff shocked world leaders who had long viewed Kenya as a peacemaker, rather than a problem, on a volatile continent.
Official results showed Kibaki narrowly won the election but Raila said victory was stolen from him by rigging. International observers said the poll was flawed.
The two signed a peace deal following mediation by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.
Uhuru and the Deputy President faced crimes against humanity charges at the ICC over the chaos. Uhuru was then deputy PM while Ruto was Eldoret North MP.
Their cases were dropped in 2014 and 2015 respectively for lack of sufficient evidence.
Last year, In his strongest condemnation yet, Raila said Uhuru should have been jailed during his trial by the ICC for crimes against humanity in the 2007-08 post-election violence.
The former Prime Minister said all other major ICC suspects have been detained at The Hague before and during their trials.
He cited former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo, former DRC Vice President Jean-Pierre Bemba, former Liberian leader Charles Taylor, former LRA chief Dominic Ongwen, among others.
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