Security in Eldoret tight as Raila lands for rally

Police at 64 Stadium in Eldoret town Friday morning, June 27, 2014, JARED NYATAYA/NATION

What you need to know:

  • Mr Mandago has led calls to have the Cord rally shelved citing security fears in the county worst hit by the 2008 post-election violence.
  • Business in Eldoret continued normally ahead of the rally with the increased police presence the only visible distraction.
  • By 11am the whole town was dotted with uniformed police officers with General Service Unit trucks patrolling the 64 Stadium and its precincts.

Cord principal Raila Odinga and opposition leaders landed in Eldoret Friday morning amid tight security, with the former Prime Minister criticising area governor Jackson Mandago for causing tension ahead of their rally at the 64 Stadium in the town.

Police in Eldoret left nothing to chance ahead of the much anticipated opposition alliance rally, assigning an overwhelming number of officers to the town, with some imported from neighbouring Nandi, Elgeyo Marakwet and Trans Nzoia counties to shore up the forces on the ground.

Speaking immediately after he landed at the homestead of former Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) chairman, the late Said Keitany, at the Islamic Centre area, Mr Odinga said the governor did not have any business highlighting security concerns saying the issue was “not his mandate.”

“The national government is mandated to deal with issues of security but I wonder from whom did the governor pick up the job to talk about security and oppose our rally,” said Mr Odinga.

“It is the job of the government to have the police takes care of the security and if the police are not living up to their responsibility they shouldn’t be earning,” he added.

Mr Mandago has led calls to have the Cord rally shelved citing security fears in the county worst hit by the 2008 post-election violence.

Uasin Gishu County Commander Mr Abdi Hassan also maintained that there was tension in Eldoret and that Cord needed to reschedule their political gathering. Mr Hassan had on Thursday confirmed that people were already moving out of the county due to security fears.

Governor Mandago led a team comprising Members of Parliament allied to the ruling Jubilee Coalition, who have been opposition the rally, some citing tension.

Flanked by Senators Johnstone Muthama (Machakos), James Orengo (Siaya), Otieno Kajwang (Homa Bay) and Cord co-principal Moses Wetangula, Mr Odinga noted that the North Rift was his home where the people gave him the “Arap Mibey” Kalenjin name.

The former Prime Minister said that the country was being affected by a myriad of challenges hence his pushing for peaceful talks with President Uhuru Kenyatta.

“The country is experiencing problems in many sectors and it is the reason Cord has been trying to reach for a sober talk with the government. We have problems!” he said.

He said his intended talk with the government had an agenda that would salvage the county from plunging deeper into big problems as deterioration of security and economy.

“All sectors are not working as expected, and as a caring opposition wing, we are calling on a dialogue,” Mr Odinga said.

Mr Odinga stressed that Cord was a peaceful party and its rallies were meant to address the problems facing the country, chiefly the burden of security.

He refuted claims that the talks were a way of gaining mileage or tailored towards staging a coup and overthrowing the government, maintaining that Cord is preaching peace.

Business in Eldoret continued normally ahead of the rally with the increased police presence the only visible distraction.

By 11am the whole town was dotted with uniformed police officers with General Service Unit trucks patrolling the 64 Stadium and its precincts.

The preparations had been delayed due to the last minute clearance from the police on Thursday evening after day-long meetings between the governor and top security organs in the county.

The much hyped-up rally was given a late clearance by the county’s security team after days of a tug-of-war between the ruling Jubilee and opposition Cord political groupings that led to security concerns which resulted to a cancellation of the rally that was, however, later revoked.

Supporters started streaming into the 64 Stadium in groups as early as nine o’clock awaiting the former premier’s arrival.

“We came to see Raila and we hope the rally will be peaceful. We urge our leaders to embrace peace,” said Mr Silas Koech one of the few people who had arrived early at the stadium.