Kenya's opposition leader calls for work boycott

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Kenya's defeated opposition leader Raila Odinga urged his supporters to go on a strike on Monday. He said he will announce his next move on Tuesday.

"As we mourn Kenyans killed by Jubilee mandated death squads, let us observe tomorrow (Monday) as a day of mourning for the fallen patriots," he said on Sunday.

It was Odinga's first public announcement since his rival President Uhuru Kenyatta was declared winner on Friday.

Opposition leader Raila Odinga addresses supporters in the Kibera slum, Nairobi, Kenya August 13, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Odinga has refused to recognize the results and alleged election polls were rigged. The 72-year-old opposition leader said he had predicted the 2017 general elections would be stolen. "That is exactly what happened but we are not done yet," Odinga said.

Angry protests had erupted in opposition strongholds in Nairobi and Kisumu areas as the counting of votes went underway, but the IEBC said the election had been free and fair. The opposition said more than 100 of its supporters were killed in the past two days while state-run human rights body put the death toll at 24. The Kenya Red Cross said on Saturday it had treated 93 injured people.

The African Union (AU) has called on all the concerned to refrain from any action or statement that can further heighten post-election tensions in Kenya.

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Source(s): Xinhua News Agency