Yesterday 43495
– Cord principal Raila Odinga confirmed the amount of money the coalition will compensate victims of the anti-IEBC protests in Kisumu and Siaya counties
– Raila was speaking during a requiem mass service for the deceased, where he said he will see to it that their deaths are not in vain
The Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (Cord) announced that it will compensate families of the four people who died during anti-Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) demos in Nyanza in May 2016.
Cord principal Raila Odinga announced on Thursday, June 2 that the coalition will also compensate those injured during the protests in Kisumu and Siaya counties.
Speaking at Kirembe grounds in Kisumu during a requiem mass service for the deceased, he said that each of the four families will be receive KSh 300,000, while those injured will be paid KSh 60,000 each, reported KNA.
Kisumu County government also announced that it had waived all hospital bills for the injured.
“Peaceful demonstration and picketing is enshrined in the constitution and it is wrong for police to use excessive force to break the demonstrations, which we saw resulted in the death of the four and injuring of several others. In order that their deaths may not be in vain, we also unveiled our negotiation team for a peaceful resolution. We await Jubilee to follow suit. Kenya is waiting for leadership from its leaders on this matter,” Raila said.
Bodies of the deceased at the requiem mass in Kisumu.
He added that he was surprised when President Uhuru Kenyatta and his deputy William Ruto went back on their word on dialogue about the fate of IEBC commissioners, and that Cord would go back to the streets on Monday June 6 upon expiry of the ten-day ultimatum it had given the government for dialogue on the matter.
Other Cord politicians who attended the function to condole with families of the deceased included Governors Cornell Rassanga (Siaya), Jack Ranguma (Kisumu), Hassan Joho (Mombasa), Senators Moses Kajwang (Homabay), James Orengo (Siaya), and Johnson Muthama (Machakos) and ODM chairman John Mbadi among others.
Cord has held four demonstrations against the electoral body, which they claim is incompetent.
Raila Odinga and Cord want IEBC to be disbanded as they claim the electoral body cannot oversee a free and fair election in 2017.
The claims by Cord are based on several reasons including what they perceive as lack of fundamental reforms at IEBC.
The deceased, identified as Austine Omwombo, Frederick Otieno and Churchill Odhiambo, were laid to rest on Saturday June 4 at their respective homes.
Images: rao.co.ke/The Star
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