Former Vihiga Governor Moses Akaranga and Nairobi Woman Representative Esther Passaris have urged President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga to embrace dialogue to deal with any remaining political impasse. Speaking in Nairobi during a fund drive for ChemChemi ya Uzima Institue, Akaranga said the state of the nation is more vital, “I want to urge honourable Raila to go slow so that we can create peace in this country. This country belongs to all of us, and if there are fracas in the nation, it will be terrible,” he said.
Akaranga said he has seen first hand what a lack of peace can do, given that he was once the chairman of the national humanitarian advisory board, “It was mandated to resettle internally displaced persons in this country and what I saw I wouldn’t like to see again,” he said.
On her part, Nairobi Woman representative Esther Passaris said the leadership should come together and nothing should be ignored in the pursuit of peace, including the people’s assembly, “You can’t ignore the people’s assembly, if you want to be President of the country and you want to unite the country,” she said. She recalled that President Kenyatta has more than once spoke of unity and uniting the nation, saying this should also be seen in the formation of the government. Furthermore, Passaris said President Kenyatta shouldn’t ignore Raila Odinga in the pursuit of peace and unity, given that he made major contributions in the country, including gains in Kenya’s democracy.