By Collins Wanzallah
Several young leaders from 54 organisations have called for nationwide protests today (Tuesday) to mark Katiba Day. The National Provisional Coordination Committee of People`s Assemblies (NCCPA), led by their spokesperson, Kasmuel McOure, in an address to the media in Nairobi, claimed that President William Ruto has failed to respect the constitution and he should resign.
They said that the constitution promulgated in 2010 marks its 14th anniversary today but has not been respected by the President and other political leaders, some of whom have been brought into the government. McOure was accompanied by other leaders, including Prof. Fred Ogolla and Booker Ngesa Omole, the Deputy National Chairman of the Communist Party of Kenya. They said the constitution, which symbolises our collective struggle for justice, democracy, and freedom, was under vicious assault by the President.
“Under President William Ruto’s regime, the country has been plunged into darkness. Over 345 innocent people have been brutally murdered in extrajudicial killings,” they added. Flanked by several youths, among them university student leaders from the University of Nairobi, they said that the president had settled on siding with a few fellow billionaires they claimed had plundered the country`s wealth.
They labelled the current government led by President Ruto and Azimio leader Raila Odinga as corrupt and described Mr Odinga as an opportunist. The group said that they don`t recognise or respect the broad-based government, the post of Prime Cabinet Secretary held by Musalia Mudavadi, and the recycling of sacked cabinet secretaries back into the government as advisors.
Former public service CS Moses Kuria and his counterpart former ICT CS Eliud Owalo were reappointed into government and named as presidential economic advisor and deputy chief of staff in charge of performance and delivery. The youths say that the country is in an economic crisis and drowning in illegitimate debt, adding that many youths were jobless and the cost of living was unbearable.
“We are calling for a total shutdown of the nation. Tomorrow (Tuesday) will not just be a day of commemoration; it will be a day of mass action, “their statement added. They went on to add that they were announcing a general strike, a protest against the tyranny of President Ruto and demanded his immediate resignation.
Tomorrow at 2.00 pm, they urged Kenyans wherever they will be to abandon whatever they will be doing and have a short break of reflection on whether the constitution has helped them or not. The group too added that they will move around the country convincing Kenyans on why there is a need for a new government in the country and that they will field some of their members for elective posts during election time.
In the statement, they gave five points, which they claimed the people of Kenya wanted.
- Reclaim national sovereignty and establish a pro-people`s government that reflects the true will of the people free from the influence of corrupt elites.
- Implement economic justice by implementing policies that prioritise job creation, affordable living, and equitable distribution of resources.
- Cement accountability and justice: hold those responsible for corruption and extrajudicial killings accountable through a transparent legal process.
- Restore and defend constitutional integrity by ensuring that it remains the supreme law of the land, unaltered by those in power.
Establish inclusive governance through genuine mechanisms for people-driven public participation in decision-making processes at all levels of government. The student leaders present said that they were against the university students’ new funding model and announced that on September 9, they would hold a protest in the country`s universities to show dissatisfaction with it.
“Students who are getting higher funding are those whose parents are well connected and rich, yet the poor ones get a small fraction of it,” they claimed.
