Kenya Kwanza Bipartisan Committee on Tuesday, July 4, claimed that their Azimio la Umoja counterparts tried to hoodwink them into signing letters that would have been illegal.
Addressing the media in Nairobi, the Kenya Kwanza Bipartisan Committee co-chair George Murugara explained that he would have committed an illegality should he have signed the letter ordering Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) Selection Committee to stop its activities.
According to Murugara, his co-chair Otiende Amollo knew that he would have gone against the law since the Bipartisan Committee had no powers to interfere with the work of the IEBC Selection Committee.
"I explained that I had sent drafts, as such, I expected drafts with amendments back but I did not receive any of that from the Azimio la Umoja side.
"Instead, I got a final letter whose content was different from the draft that I had sent in response to the previous letters. By asking me to sign the two letters, they were actually inviting me to commit an illegality," Murugara stated.
In particular, the Kenya Kwanza Bipartisan Team accused the chairman of Azimio la Umoja wing, Otiende Amollo, of making convoluted demands laced with ill-conceived intentions to direct IEBC on what to do.
"It would have been an illegality to direct the IEBC Selection panel on what they need to do as far as recruitment of the new commissioners is concerned.
"IEBC does not take directives from anyone. That is why I told them that I was not able to sign those letters. To me, the letters were not properly done," Murugara noted.
Murugara regretted that the committee formed on May 18, 2023, after the two coalitions failed to reach an agreement on the IEBC composition through indirect talks, was also on the path of failing to resolve the issues at hand.
The Tharaka Member of Parliament, therefore, called on the Azimio la Umoja colleagues to return to the table for talks so that they may reach a consensus on the selection and appointment metrics.
"The Kenya Kwanza Bipartisan Committee is a critical part of the process of ensuring that the IEBC is composed of credible and independent commissioners. The committee's work is essential to ensuring that the 2027 general election is free, fair, and credible," Murugara noted.
The committee had been meeting regularly since its formation and had made some progress in solving the differences between the two coalitions.
However, Azimio la Umoja on May 23 suspended the talks indefinitely citing key issues that needed to be resolved before an agreement could be reached.
