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Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo/FILE

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Mutula to Wiper: There’s no shortage of parties

Justice Minister Mutula Kilonzo/FILE

NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 31 – Justice and Constitutional Affairs Minister Mutula Kilonzo has now dared the Wiper Democratic Movement to kick him out, saying that there is no shortage of political parties.

Kilonzo told Capital News on Tuesday that he would not go back on his stance calling for the resignation of Uhuru Kenyatta as Deputy Prime Minister nor support his presidential bid alongside that of Eldoret North MP William Ruto.

He maintained that he was prepared to defend his position adding that he would not be cowed into embracing principles that went against the spirit of the new Constitution disclosing that he had already been enticed by 21 political parties for his bold stand.

Read related story on his stand here.

“I’m working with a lot of people who know better but don’t speak out and when they speak out, they do it in their bedrooms; when they go out in rallies they say something totally different,” he argued.

“But there is no reason to call me names or pretend that they can grill me,” he added.

The Justice Minister also revealed that he had not been formally summoned by his party and was therefore not aware of any plans to take disciplinary action against him.

Kilonzo has in the recent past found himself in turbulent waters for going against the party’s position with party leader Kalonzo Musyoka who says he supports Kenyatta and Ruto’s bids for the presidency regardless of their cases at the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Read his stand on ICC indictment here.

“To be fair, I have not received any summons from the party or the coalition or anything to show that there are disciplinary processes against me but I want to dare them to do so,” stressed Kilonzo.

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Kalonzo, Ruto, Kenyatta have already declared their intention to form an alliance through which to pursue their political ambitions for the next government.

Kilonzo however maintained that the country’s leaders had a bigger role to play in terms of safeguarding Kenyans’ interests and it would be wrong for political ambitions to cloud such judgments.

“I’m the minister who facilitated the new Constitution. The late Mboya (Tom) tried in 1969, Charles Njonjo tried, Kiraitu Muriungi tried and Martha Karua walked out on her own with those high Prada shoes,” he argued.

“But I came, I saw, I delivered; nobody is going to step in my way,” he quipped.

He also renewed his calls to Kenyatta to relinquish his post as Deputy Prime Minister.

Last week, Kenyatta and former Head of Civil Service Francis Muthaura stepped aside from their government posts in light of the ruling by the ICC. Kenyatta however maintains that he will not give up his post as Deputy Prime Minister unless Members of Parliament pass a vote of no confidence against him.

“Kenyatta is still sticking to his post as Deputy Prime Minister which I don’t understand because I expected him to voluntarily step down as it is a much more superior position. So I can’t pretend that everything that I recommended has happened,” he said.

The Justice Minister at the same time called on Kenyans to remain sober arguing that they needed to come to terms with the significance of the ruling by the ICC.

He noted that the decision by the court to confirm charges against Kenyatta, Ruto, Muthaura and journalist Joshua arap Sang was an indication that crimes against humanity were possibly committed on Kenyan soil and there was need to confront this reality.

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“You may bury your head in the sand like my ostriches do and think that the storm will pass but international crime is here with us. The sooner we come to terms with it the better and my work is to make sure that you see that fine line,” he said.

He also revealed that his ministry had in collaboration with officials from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution set up a special taskforce that would revisit files made on post election violence, with a view of initiating prosecution against other perpetrators who are not targeted by the ICC.

Kilonzo added that time had come for Kenyans to confront the ghosts of the post election violence so as to offer reprieve to the victims.

“I see preachers in rallies praying for the accused but who will speak for the voiceless? Don’t the victims deserve prayers too? We must not forget the victims of the post election violence,” he urged.

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