- Muragara, however, said they were still open to talks should the Azimio faction decide to come back to the table.
- Otiende suspended the talks indefinitely on May 31 through a letter addressed to Murugara.
Image: FILE
Azimio members in the bipartisan talks have explained why they snubbed a meeting attended by their Kenya Kwanza counterparts last Tuesday.
Rarieda MP Otiende Amollo said failure by the side to co-sign and submit letters addressed to the IEBC CEO and the chairperson of the IEBC selection panel was the main cause.
"We went there with clean hearts but they were not committed. We wrote letters but they refused to co-sign and that is where we realized they are taking us in rounds...thinking we are fools," Otiende said.
"I am a lawyer and I understand this that is why we informed our leader (Raila) about our decision to quit."
In the letters, Azimio wanted the recruitment of commissioners to be suspended until the conclusion of the talks and an assurance that IEBC CEO Marjan Hussein be ordered to preserve the servers and the data therein.
Committee co-chair George Muragara has, however, maintained that some demands were unreasonable and unattainable.
“We do not know why they are not coming back to the table because they had made several demands which were possibly not met according to them," he told the press.
Murugara also affirmed that they were still open to talks should the Azimio faction decide to come back to the table.
Otiende suspended the talks indefinitely on May 31 through a letter addressed to Murugara.
“In the circumstances, it is our considered opinion that the appropriate action is to adjourn the talks sine die, in accordance with Clause 36 of the Framework Agreement, which we hereby invoke,” the letter read in part.
"We are withholding the issuance of a notice of dissolution under clause 38 of the framework agreement until you respond to the aforementioned concerns."
Otiende has at the same time warned that they will be no elections in the country until they reach an agreement on how to appoint the IEBC commissioners.
He said IEBC cannot function without Kenyans.
"Every polling station has polling agents, every constituency has IEBC office and every county also has an office...if they think they can form an IEBC of Kenya Kwanza, the people will strongly reject it," he said.
Recruitment of the commissioners, the Star has learned, is ongoing.
IEBC recruitment panel chairman Nelson Makanda said his team never abandoned the exercise and has all along been working.