The Kenya Kwanza side of the bipartisan talks has affirmed that they will not be able to meet Azimio la Umoja's ultimatum in which the Raila Odinga-led coalition demanded that the talks begin on Monday, August 7.
In a letter signed by National Assembly Majority Leader, Kimani Ichung'wah, the Kenya Kwanza camp noted that it will not be possible for the two teams to hold the bilateral talks on Monday citing other engagements.
Ichung'wah also stated that their inability to appear for the talks should not be misinterpreted to mean that they are not serious and committed to the dialogue.
"I acknowledge receipt of your letter dated 3rd August 2023 contents of which we duly note. However, we seek the indulgence of your team on the invitation to a meeting on Monday 7th August 2023.
"While appreciating the urgency to embark on the talks, it is worth noting that having just constituted our team, we had a scheduled debrief on Monday with our team in order to prepare for the talks and a further engagement with the Bi-Partisan team and their assisting counsels on Tuesday 8th August 2023," the statement by Ichung'wah read in part.
The Kenya Kwanza bipartisan team countered with their own proposal, suggesting a joint first meeting on Thursday, August 10, at 10 am.
President William Ruto's team also rejected the proposal by Azimio that the talks be held at Serena Hotel in Nairobi, noting that such endeavour would be very expensive for the country.
"With the view of mitigating the high cost of living, we respectfully request your team to allow the two teams to schedule our meetings at public venues such as County Hall which I would be happy to engage the Parliamentary Service Commission to make available or in the alternative at the School of Government-Kabete," Ichung'wah proposed.
Kenya Kwanza explained that the Town Hall meeting will not occasion any additional expenditure to the public and which would otherwise be available for such public meetings at little or no cost.
Ichung'wah noted that open debate and discussions would be most ideal since the issues they will be discussing are those of public interest, including what he termed as reckless accumulation of public debt.
"We firmly believe that through this dialogue, as courageous patriots, we shall restore the faith of our nation's people in democratic ideals and entrench a culture of respect to the rule of law and constitutionalism.
"For that matter, we shall not be available to engage on any issues that are of personal or private nature whatsoever. Further, Kenya being a constitutional democracy, we strongly believe in the rule of law and our position is that this dialogue will be conducted within the parameters of the Constitution and the existing laws," Ichung'wah affirmed.
On Thursday, August 3, the opposition's dialogue team, led by Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka demanded that the talks start on Monday, August 7, at the Serena Hotel.
In a letter he addressed to Ichung'wah, the Wiper Party leader urged both teams to move faster to initiate the process that former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo brokered.
"We have taken this step because we believe time is of the essence. While a lot of hard work will be needed to resolve the issues at hand, we believe a speedy start and a time-bound program are necessary to put the nation at ease," the opposition co-principal stated.
