Martha Karua- Why I Apologized To Raila
NARC Kenya party leader Martha Karua, on Thursday, stated that she apologised to her Azimio boss Raila Odinga for failing to attend the coalition’s presser on the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report.
While addressing journalists, Karua refuted claims of falling out with Odinga, maintaining that she was still on good terms with the opposition leader despite contrasting the coalition’s stance on the NADCO report.
Karua was among the Azimio leaders who missed Raila’s media briefing in late November, where he endorsed the NADCO report but warned of its shortcomings including its failure to lower the cost of living.
“I gave my apology that morning we spoke but I had also indicated that we were together on all four but we stick to the three deal breakers. We had agreed that the three issues were deal breakers,” Karua noted.
“The stand on NARC Kenya is total rejection, but we remain an integral part of the coalition. We differ with respect.”
While defending her take on the report, Karua termed the NADCO report fraudulent and aimed at benefitting select leaders rather than the common mwananchi.
Karua, who called for a total rejection of the declaration, said it failed to address the hiking prices of essential commodities like fuel and food items.
She also faulted the report for failing to address the ever-surging taxation and the high rate of unemployment.
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“Unemployment has also been a challenge that has not been addressed, especially following the recent report by FKE (Federation of Kenya Employees) where over 70, 000 people have lost their jobs,” Karua denoted.
“For any talks to succeed, those holding tools of power must be willing and act in good faith. Our reading is that the Ruto regime lacks the sincerity required to make the talks succeed and deliberately sabotage the people’s demands while presenting their won parliamentary agenda as demands.”
On November 29 Azimio coalition led by Raila Odinga endorsed the NADCO report, describing it as a good start.
He further pledged to engage his followers to discuss the way forward, especially in heaping pressure on the government to curb the high cost of living.
“The document the team has come up with is, ultimately, imperfect and unfinished. But it is a beginning. We have agreed to disagree on the most important matter to us. We made what believed were reasonable proposals on how to address the rising cost of living.
“But the government side flatly refused terming it their exclusive business and further arguing that they got the mandate of Kenyans to execute their Kenya Kwanza economic agenda,” Raila stated.
Martha Karua- Why I Apologized To Raila