As post election tension continues to brew in Kenya, defeated opposition leader Raila Odinga continues to utter sweeping statements disputing the legitimacy of the new government.
Odinga in a tweet on Sunday evening said there would be no turning back and that “each vote will and must count”.
Odinga’s National Super Alliance (NASA) has openly contested the outcomes of last Tuesday’s Presidential elections calling it a sham.
On Sunday, Odinga accused President-elect Uhuru Kenyatta’s new government of masterminding the killings by security forces of opposition supporters who were protesting the results.
The country and observers brace for Tuesday when NASA say they will announce their next move to deal with the August 8 ‘election fraud’. They say they are ready to present compelling evidence to back their claims.
“One thing was crystal clear as I engaged Nairobians today in Mathare North. There is no turning back – Each vote will and must count,” Odinga said in a tweet.
At a rally held in Kibera, a slum outside Nairobi on Sunday, Odinga told his supporters not to go to work on Monday and mourn innocent people that were shot dead during protests.
In a statement released on Saturday by NASA co-chairs Senator Johnstone Muthama and Senator James Orengo, Kenyans were rallied to defy Kenyatta’s government which they claimed lacks electoral mandate.
“We wish to assure people that we have the will, determination and means to make sure your vote will count. We shall do so. The culture of stealing votes with impunity every five years must stop,” read the statement.
The international community continues to call for calm in Kenya in fear that the situation could devolve into a crisis similar to the 2007 post election violence that left over 1,000 people dead. Many are piling pressure on the opposition to accept the results.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres urged Raila Odinga to “send a clear message to his supporters urging them to refrain from violence.” Gueterres asked that electoral disputes be addressed through constitutionally mandated institutions.
Similar appeals have been made by British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, European Union foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini and former UN Secretary General Koffi Anan.
Observers present in Kenya during the elections said the elections were credible and well organised
