Cleophas Malala, Secretary General of the United Democratic Alliance, has chastised Jeremiah Kioni following a heated exchange between Kioni and EALA MP Hassan Omar on Thursday during bi-partisan meetings between Kenya Kwanza and Azimio la Umoja.
While reports indicate that the altercation began after Kioni allegedly stated that the talks were doomed to fail, the Jubilee Secretary-General stated that the UDA vice-chairperson chastised him for his unwavering stance that the primary focus of the talks should be on reducing Kenyans' high cost of living.
"I said that I wouldn't want to sit in a situation where I feel like we are conning Kenyans. There are those who thought that shouldn't have been said, but I am still saying it. What took us to Bomas and why people were killed was the cost of living. That's why people were demonstrating," said Kioni then.
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While commissioning new UDA offices in Narok County, Malala blasted Kioni for allegedly turning to violence rather than expressing his views logically.
"Yule jamaa anaitwa Kioni, yeye anaamka anasema ati hizi talks hakuna maana ati yeye anataka kupigana mangumi pale kwa hizo talks hakuna maana ati yeye anataka kupigana mangumi pale kwa hizo talks." Tafadhali wacha fujo na mangumi. "If you have ideas, intellectually challenge us," Malala urged
"Hauwezi kuwa kwa mkutano kama hiyo, wewe unaamka unataka kupiga vice-chair person wa chama tawala mangumi. Wewe Kioni we want to warn you; you must respect the vice chair person of UDA."
While underlining that the ruling Kenya Kwanza government completely supports the ongoing bipartisan discussions, Malala also assured that there is no schism in Kenya Kwanza's leadership, as some media outlets have recently claimed.