Raila Holds Meeting with Peter Kenneth in Nairobi

Former Gatanga Member of Parliament Peter Kenneth on Tuesday paid a courtesy call on opposition leader Raila Odinga at his Capitol Hill offices in Nairobi.

In a statement, Odinga’s spokesman Dennis Onyango said the two held discussions on the state of the nation, particularly on the hiked fuel prices.

“The two leaders paid special attention to the rising cost of fuel and its projected spiral effect on other aspects of life,” read the statement.

“Drawing from his Treasury background, Mr. Kenneth shared insights on what can be done to balance the need to raise money to run the country without raising the cost of fuel.”

The Orange Democratic Movement leader said there is a legitimate concern that hiking fuel prices would have a direct impact on the already high cost of living.

“The challenge is to find ways of balancing between the need to raise money to run the country while protecting the vulnerable members of society. A way out has to be found,” said Mr. Odinga.

Odinga also briefed Kenneth on the progress of the handshake between him and President Uhuru and the ongoing purge on corruption.

"Earlier today I met former Assistant Minister @Peter_Kenneth and among the issues we discussed is the legitimate concern that the rising cost of fuel will touch all other areas and could cause food inflation and demands for higher pay by workers, which will hurt employers," Raila said in a tweet.

On his part, Kenneth expressed his support to the war against graft and the building bridges initiative. Kenneth also raised concerns over the increased tax on fuel.

“Anytime cost of fuel goes up, the spiral effect hurts the common person first in a big way because the first thing that comes up is food inflation,” said the former Nairobi gubernatorial candidate.

“We can have the VAT but we can reduce other taxes associated with fuel so that the price remains the same or nearer.”