The Media Council of Kenya has condemned the call made by Azimio leader Raila Odinga to boycott services including Radio Africa Group's The Star newspaper.
Addressing the nation on Tuesday at the Jaramogi Oginga Foundation, Raila asked his supporters to boycott Safaricom, Kenya Commercial Bank and Radio Africa Group, particularly, The Star Kenya.
MCK's CEO David Omwoyo warned that the leader's sentiment against RAG may put its journalists at risk of attack by Pro-Azimio Kenyans.
"Further, and given the current economic hardships being faced by the media, boycotting a national newspaper could have serious economic consequences for the newspaper and its employees, potentially leading to job losses and financial instability," he added in a statement.
Omwoyo said the utterances, amount to efforts to manipulate the public's opinion and limit the freedom of the press.
"These are fundamental components of a healthy democracy, which is among the issues the opposition chief is fighting for,"
Further, MCK noted that such a call by political leaders seeks to undermine the freedom of the press and to control the narrative in their favour.
"Freedom of the press is an essential right that allows journalists to report on events, issues and people without fear of censorship or repression," the statement reads.
MCK has urged any political outfit, leader or member of the public aggrieved by the media to report any complaints to the Media Complaints Commission which is legally mandated to mediate on the same.
