Nasa presidential candidate Raila Odinga has protested an attempt by airport authorities to prevent co-principals Kalonzo Musyoka and Moses Wetang’ula from travelling to Uganda.
According to Raila, Kalonzo, who is his running mate, was travelling to Uganda where he is to preside at a graduation ceremony of the Uganda Technology and Management University (UTAMU) as Chancellor when authorities at the Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) tried to bar him from travelling.
“Although Mr. Musyoka and Sen. Moses Wetangula who accompanied him were later allowed to travel, the authorities disclosed that henceforth Hon Musyoka and I, the NASA candidate, would need clearance from State House before leaving the country,” he said in a statement.
According to Raila, the attempts point to a rapid deterioration of the political situation in the country and the emergence of an all-out effort to create an atmosphere of fear.
“They point to a resurgence of the old order, with the Executive giving itself powers that do not exist in our laws. NASA condemns this latest infringement on the freedoms and liberties and the harassment of its top leadership. The attempts to prohibit opposition leaders from leaving the county and to control their movement through State House clearances are illegitimate maneuvers by an increasingly paranoid regime,” said Raila.
“NASA wishes to inform the Jubilee administration that its leadership does not intend to seek any clearance from State House to travel abroad. The Kenyan Opposition must remain free as a legitimate part and parcel of the Kenyan political land scape and be allowed and enabled to pursue its mandate as an alternative government and voice of the people in line with the Constitution,” he added.
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Previously, the government has attempted to prevent Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) commissioner Roselyne Akombe and human rights crusader Prof Makau Mutua from flying out of the country.
Head of Public Service and State House Chief of Staff Joseph Kinyua also issued a circular preventing civil servants and parastatal chiefs from flying out of the country without clearance.
The move has been protested by academics, who say they are unable to attended conferences and conduct research outside the country.
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