Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has called on the government to ensure that mass vaccination takes place even if it has to borrow more to facilitate this.
Speaking in Mombasa on Wednesday, the ODM Party Leader asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to pull out all stops to ensure that Kenyans get access to vaccines so that life gains a semblance of normalcy.
"Uhuru should bring a stimulus programme like the US President Joe Biden and set aside money for vaccines," Raila said.
ODM Party Leader Raila Odinga/ Photo Courtesy
Read More
He went ahead to compare Kenya's situation to that of Britain where Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently eased restrictions with 70% of the population having been vaccinated.
Slightly over a million people have been vaccinated in Kenya.
"We want the vaccines no matter the cost. If we have to borrow then so be it. Parliament will raise the debt ceiling so that we can buy vaccines," Raila said.
Raila went on to insist that the stimulus programme would help the low-income earners who would receive cash as part of a relief programme as happened in the US.
Raila's statements were echoed by Mombasa Governor Hassan Joho who amped the pressure on President Uhuru Kenyatta asking him to ease COVID19 restriction measures so as to resuscitate the economy.
This comes just a day after One Kenya Alliance leaders asked President Uhuru Kenyatta to lift the COVID restrictions on July 31st.
The alliance asked President Uhuru to ensure that at least 50% of the population was vaccinated by the end of the year.
