The Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission has asked former Prime Minister Raila Odinga to prove claims he made earlier in the week that the military was used to rig the March 4, 2013 General Elections.
A statement issued by the commission on Monday night said the claim by the former Prime Minister is dangerous and likely to polarize voters.
“This is a creative incitement and an extremely partisan posture that deliberately overlooks facts in order to continuously project the conduct of the 2013 general elections in negative light,” the statement signed by the commission’s Communications Manager Tabitha Mutemi states in part, concluding “we challenge Raila Odinga to substantiate his claim or withdraw and apologise. Although elections are about politics, it is dangerous to politicize them.”
Terming the claim as malicious, disparaging and utter lies, the commission says such allegations should have been raised to support a presidential petition filed by the CORD leader instead of making it an issue almost a year later.
“These allegations of military involvement are false and untimely,” the commission stated, in a response to the CORD leader’s weekend claim that the government had used the military to lock out the coalition’s agents from Bomas of Kenya tallying Centre.
“The Commission only engaged Kenya Police and their GSU counterparts to provide security for everyone at the Bomas of Kenya,” it stated, and warned that such statements are likely to polarize voters in the country. “This is a creative incitement and an extremely partisan posture that deliberately overlooks facts in order to continuously project the conduct of the 2013 general elections in negative light.”
Odinga contested the presidential seat and lost in the March 4, 2013 General Election before filing a petition at the Supreme Court which upheld President Uhuru Kenyatta’s win as declared by the IEBC.
The CORD leader however, insists he was robbed of his victory, in what has angered President Kenyatta’s allies who have repeatedly urged him to “accept and move on.”
Jubilee majority leader Aden Duale at the weekend launched a scathing attack on the former Prime Minister, telling him to “stop being a perpetual complainer and focus on leading the opposition from the outside.”
“We are going to leave the former Prime Minister for what he is known for. He laments from January to December; that is what we know him for and that is his character. We cannot change it,” Duale told a press conference at the weekend, in an immediate rejoinder to Odinga’s claim.
“Kenyans went into the elections and elected President Uhuru Kenyatta and his Deputy William Ruto. They gave jubilee super majority in Parliament with 165 in the National Assembly and a super majority in the Senate,” Duale boasted, equally terming the claim ‘outrageous’-capitalfm.co.ke
