Jubilee Party has condemned remarks attributed to Nominated Member of Parliament Joseph Wainaina, describing them as divisive and potentially harmful to national cohesion, while calling on relevant state agencies to investigate the matter.
In a statement issued on Monday and signed by Secretary General Mottalel Ole Kenta, the party expressed concern over comments allegedly made by the Uasin Gishu-based MP, who urged members of a particular community to support a political arrangement and suggested that those unwilling to do so should leave the region until after the next election.
Jubilee said the remarks evoked painful memories of Kenya’s 2007/08 post-election violence, which left more than 1,000 people dead and displaced hundreds of thousands.
“Coming from a sitting Member of Parliament, a person entrusted with upholding the Constitution and safeguarding national cohesion, such language is reckless, it is divisive, and it is dangerous,” the statement said.
The party argued that rhetoric excluding Kenyans from any part of the country based on political affiliation risks deepening divisions and undermining national unity.
“We say this without equivocation; this is the exact language of exclusion that has, in the past, preceded some of the darkest chapters in our nation’s history,” Jubilee said.
Jubilee Party warns against inflammatory statements
According to the party, political leaders should avoid statements that could inflame tensions, especially as the country approaches another election cycle. It warned that what may begin as a political remark can eventually fuel narratives that threaten lives, livelihoods and property.
Jubilee further described the alleged comments as “incitement dressed up in the language of political loyalty” and said such conduct has no place in Kenya’s public discourse.
The party also criticised leaders who have remained silent over the matter, saying silence in the face of ethnic incitement amounts to complicity.
“To our fellow Kenyans and leaders across party lines, across the political divide, silence in the face of ethnic incitement is not neutrality. It is complicity,” the statement read.
Jubilee called on the National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) to investigate the remarks and determine whether any laws were violated.
“We demand that the NCIC formally investigate these remarks, and where the law has been broken, that it acts swiftly, transparently, and without fear or favour,” the party stated.
The party reaffirmed its commitment to national unity, peaceful coexistence and issue-based politics, saying it would continue to oppose ethnic mobilisation and efforts that threaten the country’s social fabric. MP Wainaina, nominated by the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA), has come under fire after a video of him addressing a gathering in Eldoret, Uasin Gishu County, went viral.
