Azimio la Umoja leader Raila Odinga's demand for a National Accord-like approach was on Tuesday, April 4, met with resentment by United Democratic Alliance (UDA) leadership.
Raila revealed that President William Ruto failed to outline Azimio's demands when he asked the Opposition to call off anti-government protests on Sunday, April 2.
According to the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) Party Leader, one of his key demands was an establishment of a committee similar to that which was set up by the National Accord and Reconciliation Act of 2008.
"Our suggestion is to have a conversation at the national level through a process akin to the 2008 National Accord. To this end, the coalition proposes a team drawn from its ranks both in Parliament and outside Bunge," Raila stated.
On Sunday, April 2, President Ruto suggested a bi-partisan engagement that will strictly be held in Parliament, particularly, on the reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).
While addressing Journalists in Kigali Rwanda on Tuesday, April 4, Ruto affirmed that there will be no handshake between him and Raila.
"There will be no handshake but there will be an engagement in parliament. Whatever can be resolved will be resolved. We have a government and opposition. We don’t want democracy to be undermined," Ruto asserted.
Shortly after Raila and Ruto addressed the media, United Democratic Alliance loyalists trooped and disparaged the ODM leader and his demand for a National Accord Committee.
"Raila Odinga is an exposed man desperate for power at whatever cost. How does he equate the current situation to the 2007/08 period and ask for power sharing under a National Accord arrangement?
"Mr Odinga you lost the election. Your demos have nothing to do with cost of living but a means to bulldoze your way to power. Trust me you will not succeed," Defence CS Adan Duale noted.
However, the Principal Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Dr Korir Sing'Oei, who was Ruto's legal advisor while serving as the country's Deputy President, supported Raila in his quest for a National Accord Committee.
"We are in a space as a country where people must learn to listen to each other and not prejudge the intentions of the other. I find nothing reprehensible in what has been proposed by Odinga here," PS Sing'Oei stated.
National Accord:
The National Accord Committee was established by an act of Parliament, that temporarily re-established the offices of Prime Minister of Kenya, along with the creation of two deputy prime ministers.
The National Accord and Reconciliation Act of 2008 followed an agreement that was signed on February 28, 2008, power-sharing agreement between former President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga.
Raila became the first post-independence Prime Minister after the 2008 Post-election violence that claimed at least 1,300 lives.
As a result, Raila and Kibaki formed a Grand Coalition Government which created the Office of President, Vice President, Prime Minsters, Two Deputy Prime Ministers and 42 Cabinet Ministers.
Musalia Mudavadi and Uhuru Kenyatta were picked as Deputy Prime Ministers under the arrangement.
At the time, it was not clear if the National Accord superseded the Constitution of Kenya or not.
The ambiguity of the National Accord led to a serious impasse in the appointment of the Leader of Government Business that persisted for several months before it was resolved.
Former UN Secretary General the late Kofi Annan mid-wifed the peace accord between Odinga and Kibaki after months of a standoff.
