Kenyan Senator calls for President's resignation

NAIROBI,  Kenya 

Kenyan Senator, Okiya Omtatah, has reiterated his demand for President William Ruto's resignation despite the head of state dissolving Cabinet on Thursday as an initial measure to tackle administrative inefficiencies within the Kenya Kwanza government.

Speaking on the Senate floor on Thursday, Omtatah stressed that the shortcomings of the ruling regime should not be attributed solely to the sacked ministers but also President Ruto as well. According to Omtatah, the captain should take responsibility and go down with his ship.

"The Cabinet has been dissolved but that is like putting balm on a wound. What we demand or what I personally think is ready to happen is that the entire Kenya Kwanza administration, led by President Ruto, must vacate power. I am demanding that President Ruto vacate office; it's the only honourable thing to do.," said Omtatah.

"Everything around him (Ruto) has collapsed. So you cannot say that his juniors should bear the burden. The ball stops with him and the call that President Ruto must go is a call that must be applied and as they say a fish begins rotting from the head."

Additionally, Omtatah referenced the multiple deaths of protesters recorded in June during the height of the anti-government demonstrations and Ruto's subsequent statement after the demonstrators breached Parliament Grounds on June 25.

Speaking then,  Ruto described the breach of parliament as treasonous, vowing to crack down on the organisers and financiers of the protests, whom he labelled criminals, at "whatever cost."

"The call that Ruto must go is not an idle call; it is a call whose time has come. Mr. Ruto told us that criminals were on the streets; he has not produced a single criminal and we cannot be told lies every day. Justice is crying out, our children have died and this is something that has never happened in Kenya," said Omtatah.

"The president has called them criminals and he cannot continue sitting in power when children have died and he said "we'll do anything at whatever cost" when the constitution says you can't do anything at whatever cost."  

The Busia Senator added; "My call is to associate my voice with people who are saying that the President vacate office. There is no room for all we are doing here; let's start off on a new slate. Anything less than that will not avenge the blood that has been spilled on our streets!"