• The Kikuyu MP who was reacting to an announcement that Azimio had endorsed contents of the report said every good journey has a good start.
• Ichung'wah in a statement on X, said political contests should never be used to bring about hatred.
Image: PCS
National Assembly majority leader Kimani Ichung'wah has sent a message to Opposition Chief Raila Odinga after Azimio endorsed the report by the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO).
The Kikuyu MP who was reacting to an announcement that Azimio had endorsed contents of the report said every good journey has a good start.
Ichung'wah in a statement on X, said political contests should never be used to bring about hatred.
He said such contests should serve as platforms to start constructive talks, where opposing ideologies are brought together for the greater good of the country.
"Baba, Raila Odinga, every good journey has a good start. As we said, "political contestations should never be a catalyst for animosity or hatred. Instead, they should serve as avenues for constructive dialogue, where differing ideologies converge in pursuit of the greater good,” Ichung'wah said.
The NADCO made public its report on Saturday, after 90 days of deliberations and collection of proposals from Kenyans and experts in different areas.
In the report, both camps made proposals on key issues that were part of the talks, which they disclosed failed to strike a deal on Azimio's major concerns on taxes, the Finance Act, and the housing levy.
"The committee was unable to reach a consensus on several other proposals on the matter of cost of living, including the reduction of VAT on fuel from 16 per cent to eight per cent and scrapping of the housing levy, the twin issues in the Finance Act, 2023," the report stated.
The report, however, made radical legislative proposals to accommodate the leader of the official opposition and two deputies in Parliament.
The report also proposed that the law be amended to establish the office of the Prime Minister.
Raila on Wednesday chaired a crucial parliamentary group meeting for all MPs allied to his Azimio coalition, where the report was endorsed.
Narc Kenya party leader Martha Karua and her DAP counterpart Eugene Wamalwa were a no-show at the Azimio Parliamentary Group meeting where the opposition publicly backed the report for the first time.
Raila however, refuted claims of any divisions over the report.
“There is no disagreement at all. Wamalwa was here in the meeting of the summit, he had to leave because of pressing matters,” Raila said, adding that the former Defence CS too had endorsed the report.
According to Raila, Karua was in Somaliland and could not attend both the summit and Azimio PG.