NAIROBI, Kenya, 26 – Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka and Deputy prime Minister have separately petitioned the National Cohesion and Integration Commission to veto the use of the term \’KKK\’ saying it is divisive and depicts them as tribalists.
Mr Kalonzo said his rights had been violated by those associating him with tribalism. He accused unnamed leaders whom he accused of using the term to malign him and gain political mileage.
"This amounts to hate speech. Anybody using this tag is basically asking Kenyans to hate these fellows," he complained and added: "It goes against everything we have been talking about on our reforms agenda."
Mr Kenyatta in his letter NCIC chairman Mzalendo Kibunjia to inform the country that the continued use of the KKK tag was against national unity, cohesion and integration.
"To the best of my understanding, the branding of certain leaders as KKK is divisive because it purports to bring together some communities to the exclusion of others," he said.
The announcement that Mr Kalonzo, Mr Kenyatta and Eldoret North MP William Ruto are forming an alliance ahead of the 2012 poll has been described as a unity pact for the Kamba, Kikuyu and Kalenjin communities.
"We know the tribe has been the problem in this country and it is pretty unfortunate that some in our midst wants to infringe on the rights of others at a time when we want to build national healing and reconciliation," said Mr Kalonzo.
Mr Kenyatta concurred with the VP that the branding amounted to tribalism and was a threat to national unity.
"The continued referral to the KKK tag and further association of it with myself, despite my repeated public rejection of the idea of tribal alliances, can only be interpreted as a deliberate and sustained campaign to malign my name and good standing among Kenyans of all walks of life, ethnicity and creed," said the Finance Minister.
"It is designed to portray me as having an agenda that is tribalistic, exclusionary and against the principles of cohesion."
He added: "The KKK tag is designed to deny me my constitutional right to associate with other leaders from all walks of life and all parts of the country. It is my constitutional right to associate with other Kenyans without tribal tags being pinned on me."
Mr Kenyatta accused fellow politicians, foreign diplomats of using this tag and perpetuating it through the media.
Mr Ruto who has been vocal about an alliance with the VP and the DPM last weekend dismissed the KKK branding and said they would soon demonstrate that their alliance was national.
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