Cord cancels Nakuru rally to honour Mpeketoni victims
PHOTO | WILLIAM OERI Cord leader Raila odinga at a past event. Mr Odinga has cancelled a political rally scheduled for Sunday in Nakuru, asking his supporters to instead dedicate the day for prayers in honour of Mpeketoni attack victims.
What you need to know:
- The opposition coalition also said it had suspended the Kisii rally scheduled for Friday, following requests by local leaders to be allowed to concentrate on the Bonchari constituency by-elections scheduled for Monday.
- The Friday rally, which was to be held at the Gusii Stadium, would instead be held on July 4 at the same venue, the coalition said in another statement sent to newsrooms.
Cord leader Raila Odinga has cancelled a political rally scheduled for Nakuru on Sunday, asking supporters and all Kenyans to dedicate in honour of Mpeketoni attack victims.
“The coalition wants residents of the county and Kenyans in general, wherever they are, to dedicate Sunday, June 22, 2014, to prayers for peace, security and unity in the country,” Mr Odinga said through a statement by his spokesman Dennis Onyango.
The opposition coalition also said it had suspended the Kisii rally scheduled for Friday, following requests by local leaders to be allowed to concentrate on the Bonchari constituency by-elections scheduled for Monday.
The Friday rally, which was to be held at the Gusii Stadium, would instead be held on July 4 at the same venue, the coalition said in another statement sent to newsrooms.
Cord said it acceded to the request to allow the leaders to devote time in the campaigns for the ODM parliamentary candidate Oroo Oyioka.
“The campaigns for the ODM candidate in Bonchari Oroo Oyioka are being spearheaded by party leader Mr Raila Odinga who arrived in Kisii town Thursday morning,” read part of the statement.
The Bonchari by-election is set for June 23 and the parliamentary seat was declared vacant after the Court of Appeal sitting in Kisumu revoked the installation of Mr Oyioka as MP after a vote count ordered by the High Court that showed he had more votes than Zebedeyo Opore.
SERIES OF RALLIES
The Kisii and Nakuru rallies are part of a series of political gatherings that the coalition has organised to be held across the country.
Cord said all other rallies would be held at the planned times and would not be affected by the postponement and cancellation of the Kisii and Nakuru events.
A planned rally at Muliro Gardens in Kakamega on June 21 will go on as scheduled and Cord said the preparations for it had been completed.
The coalition's series of rallies started at Tononoka in Mombasa last Sunday where calls for a national dialogue dominated the agenda.
