Jubilee MPs turned the heat on President Uhuru Kenyatta and his advisors for putting conditions on the pension of opposition chief to push them out of politics.
There was a heated exchange in Parliament today as the Jubilee lawmakers joined their opposition colleagues to tell off the Majority Leader Aden Duale for the illegal clause contained in President Kenyatta’s memo, Standard reports.
The chairman of President Kenyatta’s party, The National Alliance, Johnson Sakaja (nominated) lit the fireworks as he blamed the advisors of the President at State House for what he said was a “petty and unconstitutional proposal”.
Kabando wa Kabando (Mukurweini), Mithika Linturi (Igembe South) and Ronald Tonui (Bomet Central) joined Sakaja in criticising their coalition leader.
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But even as Jubilee MPs joined hands with their opposition colleagues, their rejection of the memo failed because they had no numbers. The House needed 233 MPs to reject the President’s proposal, but there were hardly 100 lawmakers in the House.
With the furore in the House, opposition MP David Ochieng’ (Ugenya) vowed to go to court to have the offensive clause dropped and allow the opposition chiefs to access their pensions. They said the requirement in the presidential memo on the Retirement Benefits (Deputy President and Designated State Officers) Bill, 2015 that former Prime Minister Raila Odinga and former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka have to quit elective politics before they enjoy their pension millions was absurd.
“This is an unreasonable restriction. The little money that is due to go to the former Prime Minister and Vice President is not for campaigns. It is for services already rendered. Those who are misadvising the President on this issue to make him look petty and vindictive are not doing us a service,” said Mr Sakaja.
He noted that the Constitution was very clear about political rights of individuals to vie for elective posts. “The government loses nothing by being magnanimous and giving people their rights. You can’t deny people their rights. I know the President well and this does not look like him,” said Sakaja.
