Kenyan opposition leader Raila Odinga has requested that parties outside of parliament be engaged in dialogues on electoral reform and the high cost of living, in contrast to President William Ruto’s aim for just parliamentary debates to occur.
Odinga predicted further protests if government demands were not met.
Odinga agreed to meet with Ruto on Sunday to address the issue after President Ruto demanded that opposition leader Raila Odinga halt rallies including charges of fraud in the August presidential elections. Thousands have joined in three major opposition marches in the last two weeks, all of which ended in bloodshed.
Local authorities and their foreign colleagues, most notably the U.S. Embassy in Kenya, have welcomed the discussions to avoid disruptions in the largest economy in East Africa.
Odinga hopes for conversations similar to those that led to a government of national unity and ended post-election violence in 2008.
To achieve this objective, he said, “the coalition advises a team created from within its ranks in Parliament and beyond”
Ruto had encouraged the most senior members of his coalition to emphasize opposition concerns on Monday.
He said, while in Kigali on Tuesday, his offer to the opposition to engage in “nonpartisan” discussions inside parliament. Ruto shares the stage with Rwandan President Paul Kagame during a news conference.
At a news conference, Odinga warned that protests might continue if the opposition’s demands are not met. They include an audit of the elections.
At the first sign of insincerity from the other side, he pledged, “we will return to the people.”
