RAILA WANTS UHURUS ICC CASE TERMINATED IF EVIDENCE IS INSUFFICIENT, RUBBISH PRESIDENTS HANDOVER OF POWER TO RUTO Via: #theSTAR CORD leader Raila Odinga wants President Uhuru Kenyatta’s case at the International Criminal Court concluded swiftly. During a press conference on Wednesday, a day after the Cord leader arrived back in the country after trips to the US and Mozambique, Raila said the opposition does not support the postponement of Uhuru’s case. “I don’t know what the opposition will gain if the case against the President is postponed. We have said that we want the matter put behind us and we will be the last people to support the idea,”Raila said.He further called for the termination of the case should the judges find that there is insufficient evidence to progress with the trial. Raila at the same time lauded Uhuru for refusing to drag the sovereignty of the Republic of Kenya to the ICC when he honoured summonses to attend the status conference on his trial on October 8 as a private citizen. “We must commend the President for not taking Kenya the Sudan way,” Raila said in reference to ICC fugitive Sudan President Omar el-Bashir.At the same Raila backed Uhuru’s objection to the summoning of ministers by Parliament, overruling members of his coalition who on Tuesday protested a decision by Speaker Justin Muturi to suspend the General Oversight Committees grilling of the Cabinet. The Cord leader however rubbished a move by the President on October 7 to resign for three days and hand over power to the deputy president ahead of the status conference at the ICC. Raila questioned what was so special with going to the ICC for the president to convene a joint house sitting “only to hand over a motorcade.” “When the President went to the US for two weeks, why didn’t he hand over power to his deputy. Why ICC? He should spare us the drama.” Raila said. The Cord leader who headed an observer mission in Mozambique during the country’s just concluded general elections said there is a need for parties to appoint representatives to the IEBC with a mandate to be the party’s watchdog within the agreed rules governing elections. “We will also seek to have it in our constitution that results announced by presiding officers at the polling station are final and IEBC’s role will be to provide the national tally. There is no rationale whatsoever for IEBC officials sitting in Nairobi, to purport to be verifying figures sent to them by its agents at the polling stations. That system has only succeeded in creating more confusion and room to manipulate the will of the voters.” Raila said. He added that the Cord coalition will seek to amend the constitution to ensure that the IEBC has only one national voter register which shall be published at least 20 days to the generalelection. Cord will also be seeking seek a constitutional provision that the electoral commission shall provide any person the data or document used in election within 24 hours. “Provision of data within 24 hours will ensure that a person who wishes to challenge an election outcome has all requisite evidence. We are also keen to amend the Constitution to include mechanisms for ensuring that all regions have equal opportunity to access voter registration and voting stations. These measures will ensure fairness, transparency, effectiveness, accountability and accuracy in the electoral process.” Raila said. The Cord leader also termed the disputes over a Sh8 billion 134-acre piece of land in Karen an “ironic twist” given discussions on corruption in Africa during a conference at the Yale University in the U.S
Posted on: Thu, 23 Oct 2014 03:27:34 +0000