The Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) and the United Democratic Alliance (UDA) are Monday August 18 set to hold a joint Parliamentary Group meeting in a rare show of political cooperation that will be jointly presided over by President William Ruto and ODM leader Raila Odinga.
The high-profile meeting, set to take place at the KCB Leadership Centre in Nairobi, will bring together all MPs from the two parties under the framework of the broad-based government arrangement, officials said
Security was tight at the event as the lawmakers started to arrive for the meeting.
The agenda for Monday’s session is among others expected to touch on upcoming by-elections in which both ODM and UDA-affiliated parties have stakes, signaling an important test for the new political partnership.
Majority Leader Kimani Ichung’wah and his Minority counterpart Junet Mohamed confirmed that the session will provide direction on implementing the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the two leaders in October 2024.
The MOU has been a thorny issue with some feeling there is no goodwill in implementing it. But the top political leaders insist there is commitment and goodwill for its implementation.
Ruto said the meeting would focus on strategies to strengthen national unity and accelerate development.
“On Monday, we are going to have a broad-based government meeting between lawmakers from ODM and Kenya Kwanza to agree on strong mechanisms to unite the country and push it forward,” Ruto said in a separate meeting.
ODM’s Junet Mohamed echoed the sentiment, saying lawmakers will also deliberate on compensation for victims of recent protests.
“We are going to discuss agendas that will take the country forward, including helping communities affected by recent protests,” he stated.
Last week, President Ruto and Odinga appointed a five-member committee chaired by former ODM Secretary-General Agnes Zani to oversee the rollout of the 10-point agenda and recommendations of the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) report.
This was seen as a huge step in the efforts to mend fences among many doubting supporters on both sides.
The team has so far started its work.