Owalo condemns MP Iraya’s remarks, calls for NCIC, DCI action

NAIROBI, Kenya, Sept 1, 2026 — 2027 presidential aspirant Eliud Owalo has condemned remarks attributed to nominated MP Joseph Wainaina Iraya, warning that rhetoric linking political support to where Kenyans should live risks fuelling ethnic divisions ahead of next year’s General Election.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Owalo accused Iraya of making “inflammatory” and “polarising” remarks after a video circulating on social media purportedly showed the nominated MP telling members of a particular community living in the Rift Valley who do not support President William Ruto’s re-election bid to leave the region.

Owalo said such remarks were particularly concerning given Kenya’s history of election-related violence and the ethnic tensions witnessed during the 2007/2008 post-election crisis.

“We cannot be oblivious to the fact that the country is still living with the scars of the 2007/2008 post-election violence, which divided the country along ethnic lines, pitting neighbour against neighbour,” Owalo said.

He argued that Kenyans have a constitutional right to support candidates of their choice regardless of where they live, citing Article 38 of the Constitution, which guarantees political rights, including the freedom to make political choices and participate in elections.

Owalo also cited Article 39, which guarantees freedom of movement and residence and provides that every citizen has the right to enter, remain in and reside anywhere in Kenya.

The People’s Prosperity Party (PPP) presidential aspirant further invoked Chapter Six of the Constitution on leadership and integrity, saying political leaders have a responsibility to promote national unity, peaceful coexistence and public confidence.

“As leaders, we must stop the trend of ethnic mobilisation currently being witnessed in the country and desist from using ethnicity as a tool for political expediency,” he said.

Owalo called on the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC), Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) and Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC) to examine the remarks and take appropriate action within their respective mandates.

He also called for equal application of the law regardless of politicians’ affiliations, arguing that inflammatory political rhetoric should attract scrutiny whether it comes from government or opposition figures.

“The law must be applied equally and indiscriminately to leaders allied to the opposition who are opposed to the two-term mantra, as well as those supporting President Ruto’s re-election,” Owalo said.

He warned that political competition ahead of the August 2027 General Election should not be allowed to degenerate into ethnic mobilisation.

“Kenyans have a right to make their own political choices and, consequently, a right to elect leaders of their preference, free from coercion by any quarter,” he said.