YES RALLY ON LATEST

NAIROBI, Kenya, May 12 - The 16-member team formed to coordinate a campaign rally for the Yes vote in Nairobi this Saturday says it is targeting to host one million people at Uhuru Park.

The team’s chairman Cabinet Minister Fred Gumo said on Wednesday that the camp had opted for a persuasive approach to the Proposed Constitution

Mr Gumo who is also the Westlands MP said: “We have waited for this Constitution for a long time but we must look at its merits rather than its demerits; we are not competing with anyone, we are not competing with the religious leaders, we just want a new Constitution,” he said.

Former Starehe MP Maina Kamanda, who is the committee’s vice chairman, said that the Yes campaign presents a rare opportunity to bring the country together.

“The Uhuru Park rally is not a political rally; we want to set the record straight. We will have experts on hand to address concerns on land, abortion, Kadhis Courts and any other clauses that we feel might be contentious so that when Nairobi residents go back home they will be confident this is the Constitution we have been waiting for,” he said.

The team comprising MPs, former MPs and a number of parliamentary aspirants and activists from Nairobi province had earlier met Prime Minister Raila Odinga to plan for the Yes rally.

During the meeting, the PM emphasised that Yes rallies must not be used to promote any political party or individual politicians.

“We need to make the statement that the country is on the path to Yes and the tone must be set from Nairobi,” the PM said.

“The ‘Yes’ team must be one united outfit. We don’t want people to come there to heckle some leaders and promote others. Everyone must feel welcome so that we move forward as a seamless organisation. The emphasis must be that this is not a party issue. We must move in the spirit that whoever is not against us is for us. Anyone saying ‘Yes’ is for us,” he added.

Starehe MP Margaret Wanjiru did not attend the meeting but sent apologies as she was committed in court according to a statement sent to Newsrooms by the Prime Minister’s Press Service.

Those in the team include Nairobi MPs Fred Gumo, Simon Mbugua, Ferdinand Waititu, Rachel Shebesh, Elizabeth Ongoro and Makadara MP Dick Wathika.

Others are former MPs Reuben Ndolo and Betty Tett among others.