Nairobi, August 7, 2024 – Peter Munya, leader of the Party of National Unity (PNU), has voiced his concerns over Raila Odinga’s recent engagement with the Kenya Kwanza government. Munya asserts that this move contradicts previous agreements within the Azimio la Umoja coalition and has caused significant discord among its leaders.
Speaking on Spice FM, Munya highlighted that the contentious issue revolves around what he termed the “donation of members of ODM into the Kenya Kwanza government.” According to Munya, this decision was made unilaterally by Raila, without the consensus of the coalition.
“The key event that has made us quite uncomfortable is the one we are calling the donation of members of ODM into the Kenya Kwanza government,” Munya stated. “There had been discussions, and we were told by our leader in Azimio that he had been approached and that there had been talks to join the government. We had discussed and agreed that it was not right to join because the issues we had been pushing during demonstrations led by our leader and the ones led by Gen Z had not been resolved.”
Munya elaborated that any collaboration with the government should be legally established, akin to the accord made with former President Mwai Kibaki, which provided a clear framework and ensured the coalition’s objectives would be addressed.
“We reached a point where there was an agreement that if it became necessary for the opposition to join the government, it had to be a government established by law, like the one we joined with Kibaki, where an accord clearly spelled out what that government was going to do,” Munya explained.
He stressed that without such a framework, joining the government would merely serve as a lifeline for the current administration, which is under considerable pressure. “There was a consensus not to join the government,” Munya affirmed, indicating that the coalition believes in continuing its role in opposition to push for unresolved issues and necessary changes.
Regarding PNU’s position within the Azimio la Umoja coalition, Munya clarified that the party remains committed for now. He mentioned that the party’s National Executive Council (NEC) had engaged in extensive discussions about their stance, ultimately deciding that staying within Azimio was the best course of action.
“PNU is still in Azimio. I had given my opinion that if things continue as they are, then we shall consider leaving. I invited our NEC to look at whether we should stay or leave, and after a long discussion and consultation with other parties in the coalition, we agreed that it may not be opportune to leave at this point. We are stronger together,” Munya remarked.
He noted that if PNU were to leave, it would be more strategic to do so collectively with other parties within the coalition, ensuring that they continue to have a significant impact in pushing for the desired changes from the opposition side.