Raila issues demands ahead of presidential debate ‘No Uhuru insults’
Raila issues demands ahead of the presidential debate ‘No Uhuru insults’ as it happened during the deputy presidential debate.
Azimio Coalition has issued conditions to be fulfilled before its presidential candidate, Raila Odinga can participate in the presidential debate.
The coalition has asked Raila Odinga to consider skipping the debate if it will be ‘sideshows’ instead of discussing ‘important issues’ touching on the lives of Kenyans.
The coalition says the platform should not be used to ‘insult’ President Uhuru Kenyatta as it happened during the deputy presidential debate where Ruto’s running mate Rigathi Gachagua spend much of his time attacking President Uhuru.
Raila said that issues of corruption and integrity need to be part of the debate for him to participate.
Speaking in Kitale, Trans Nzoia County on Friday, 22, the Azimio team said if William Ruto is interested in mudslinging the president during the debate, then he should look for another platform.
Azimio secretary general Junet Mohammed Raila Odinga will only participate in the debate if it focuses on integrity, corruption, and governance.
He added that anything short of that, then the Azimio candidate won’t attend.
“Some people are saying that we have a debate between William Ruto and Baba (Raila Odinga), is that even possible? Baba will attend the debate, this is my personal opinion and not that of Baba, if three issues will be discussed: integrity, corruption, and governance. If there is going to be other issues, we want to send Embakasi East MP Babu Owino to debate with William Ruto,” said Mohammed.
“If we are going to discuss issues which are not important like we saw with Rigathi Gachagua, as Secretary General of Azimio, I will send Babu Owino to battle it out with William Ruto. Our competitors want to debate about President Uhuru Kenyatta, let them go and look for him and not drag him into the debate,” he added.
The Azimio camp’s demands come just a day after DP Ruto’s campaign secretariat team also issued a raft of demands to the Presidential Debates Secretariat.
They demanded that moderators of the debate confirm that questions will be centered on issues affecting Kenyans.
“We want the organizers to make public the questions for the candidates for Kenyans to know the kind of leaders they will be elected,” Director of Communication at Ruto’s Secretariat, Hussein Mohamed, said.
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