Kioni responds to Makau Mutua call for protests in Mt Kenya region

Jubilee Secretary General Jeremiah Kioni has responded to Azimio spokesperson Makau Mutua who had dared Kamwene leaders to call for protests in Mt Kenya region.

Kamwene is a group of Azimio leaders from the Mt Kenya region.

In a statement on Wednesday, December 13, Kioni said it was sad for Mutua to use protests as a measure of loyalty to Azimio.

According to Kioni, Kamwene will remain firmly in Azimio despite the remarks by Mutua.

“It’s unfortunate that some busy bodies led by Makau Mutua have set ‘maandamano’ as a standard to measure loyalty or respect granted to individuals in Azimio.

“A process in which many Kenyans lost their lives fighting for a better Kenya. We firmly remain in Azimio to stay. Get back to me on substantive issues,” stated Kioni in a statement posted on his X account.

Azimio spokesperson Prof. Makau Mutua. Photo: Courtesy

This was after Prof. Makau Mutua on Monday, December 11 said he would only take the Kamwene leaders seriously if they called for protests in Mt Kenya region.

“I will take my brother Jeremiah Kioni seriously when he and his Kamwene siblings organise Maandamano in the Mountain,” he said.

Differences between Azimio spokesperson and Jubilee party secretary emerged after Kioni opposed the national dialogue committee report.

For instance on November 28, Kioni dismissed the national dialogue report, saying it failed to address concerns of Kenyans.

Kioni, who was part of the technical team for the talks, said it was wrong for the report to recommend additional positions for politicians instead of recommending on how to lower the cost of living.

“We spoke on how to lower the cost of living but the report fell short of what we discussed,” said Kioni.

On the other hand, Mutua noted in a statement that anyone in Azimio who was not supporting the national dialogue report should quit.

“Azimio isn’t a forced marriage. Please leave if you can’t support the Nadco report which is the product of the party’s agreed democratic processes,” Mutua posted on X.