Azimio Leader Raila Odinga on Thursday, May 4, issued a new demand to President William Ruto barely hours after calling off anti-government protests.
In a statement, Raila accused President Ruto of being behind the wrangles in the former ruling Jubilee Party.
The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) chief claimed that the attempted coup against Uhuru's leadership at the Jubilee Party had savagely affected the Azimio faction.
"We demand an end to the interference in the management and operations of Political parties with a view to co-opting or paralyzing those parties," Raila stated.
A section of Jubilee Party leaders led by East African Legislative Assembly (MP) Kanini Kega on Tuesday, 2 May, ousted Uhuru as their leader.
In Uhuru's place, Kega's wing appointed Nominated Member of Parliament Sabina Chege as the Jubilee Party leader in an acting capacity.
"We have 28 members, and today we held a meeting comprising 22 members with 3 apologies; hence our side is the majority. Hence, we resolved that the upcoming meeting constituted by Uhuru goes against our party's Constitution.
"According to the Constitution, a retired president should not be involved in politics six months after leaving office. From the time he left office, his time lapsed in March 2023," Kega stated.
Angered by the ouster of his handshake brother, Raila stated that he was exploring various options to ensure what he termed as interference with politics did not occur anymore.
The former Prime Minister warned that the decision to call off the protests should not be confused with weakness and lack of will to press on for the reforms.
"When we announced the suspension of our protests one more time yesterday, we said we would summon our seven-member delegation to the bipartisan talks for debriefing and fresh instructions.
"We have resolved to approach and participate in the talks with clean hands in the interest of the country, and that the talks need to start immediately," read part of the statement.
The ODM Party Leader also asked President Ruto to intervene and lower the cost of basic commodities and services including food, fuel, electricity and school fees.
"We want the subsidies that were scrapped to be restored so that Unga can go back to retailing at Ksh100 or less. We also demand an audit of the 2022 presidential election results," Raila noted.
Raila also reiterated the need for a proper restructuring and reconstitution of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) in a manner that will not invite another round of protests.
