NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 24 — Eldas Member of Parliament Adan Keynan has condemned the planned anti-government protests led by Azimio leader Raila Odinga during the Holy Month of Ramadan.
Keynan, a member of the former ruling Jubilee Party which is a constituent member of Azimio, says Odinga-led mass action during the Ramadan period paints the country in a bad light and threatens religious freedom.
The Eldas legislator stressed that the Muslim Community deserves a peaceful environment during the Ramadan, as they pray for peace and the unity of the country at a time of heightened tension and economic unrest.
“These plans are contemptuous to the Muslim Faith and casts Kenya in a negative light to the rest of the world as a country that does not care about the rule of law and religious freedom,” Keynan said Friday.
Keynan who is also the Secretary of the Jubilee Party Parliamentary Group pointed out that nothing substantial can support the Azimio political strategy of protesting as a solution to the challenges being experienced in the country.
He argued that the protests are doing more harm than good to the country.
“In fact, the faction is making a bad situation even worse by inciting unwarranted tension, fomenting violence, sowing discord and promoting hatred, which denigrates civility and imperils the peace and stability of the Nation,” he said.
Keynan stated that a time had come for the Azimio leadership to go back to the drawing board and suspend the demos.
“Azimio should review their course of action, follow President William Ruto’s humble call for prayers and abort the mass protest during this sacred month of Ramadan, if they truly have the best interests of the Nation at heart,” he said.
Threat to peace
The statement from Keynan comes two days after Muslim leaders pleaded with Odinga to suspend the mass action during the Ramadan period as a show of respect to Islam.
The religious leaders argued that the protests also threaten the nation’s peace and tranquility.
Azimio announced plans to hold what has been dubbed as resistance protests every Monday and Thursday to agitate the President William Ruto administration to address their demands which include suspension of the recruitment of new members of the electoral agency, IEBC.
“In the second phase of our protest and due to public demand, we shall hold the protest every Monday and Thursday beginning next week,” said Odinga on March 22.
He insisted that the opposition coalition will not retreat or surrender until the government addresses their concerns.
