Uhuru and Ruto enter malindi in style/TEAMUHURU
Speaking at Karisa Maitha stadium during a prayer meeting in Malindi on Saturday, the Deputy Premier stated that leadership should only be achieved through democracy.
His sentiment follows a suggestion by the British Foreign Secretary William Hague that Kenya’s international standing and reputation could be soiled if Kenyans decided to elect individuals indicted by the International Criminal Court.
“No foreigner can tell me that he can tell Kenyans who to elect. Kenyans must be allowed to pick their leaders including the President. Democracy will not be achieved by pouring money into NGOs to wreck peace,” he said.
He recalled that in 2002 when he vied for the Presidency, he lost but respected the will of the people and others should do the same.
“Why should I be blamed on when chaos erupted in 2007 yet I was not a candidate? It is known how the chaos began. It was through the preaching of hatred and violence,” he pointed out.
His opinions were echoed by Eldoret North MP William Ruto who said that the British Foreign Secretary should have kept off Kenyan politics.
“The British should let the people of Kenya pick their leaders without unnecessary supervision,” he said.
He further stressed the need for all Kenyans to unite and solve problems in the country, stating that is the only way to achieve the Millennium Development Goals.
Ruto said that unlike leaders in the ODM party, their agenda would be about beneficial ideas and not just seeking office for the prestige it brings.
The former Agriculture Minister said that erecting road blocks for others was tantamount to dictatorship, which slows down growth.
He said that should they come into power, their agenda would be to ensure youth are fully engaged and much more productive.
Earlier, Trade Minister Chirau Ali Mwakwere alleged that the charges at The Hague were being used by foreign nations to place themselves strategically in relation to Kenya.
Mwakwere offered that friendly nations should not meddle in the internal affairs of other countries.
He urged Kenyans to remain calm and vigilant against foreign impositions.
During the Malindi prayer meeting, other MPs also castigated the British Foreign Secretary saying his country was behind the machinations of the prosecution at the ICC.
They said the British government had no moral authority to talk about the international image of other countries as it had committed numerous atrocities during the pre-colonial era.
“William Hague was not well informed. He doesn’t know that you do not come to Kenya and tell Kenyans who to elect. It is the people who decide,” Information Minister Samuel Poghisio said.
Other legislators present were Embakasi MP Ferdinand Waititu and Saboti Member of Parliament Eugene Wamalwa.
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