Press Statement

Public Boycott on 10th and 11th December

For Immediate Release

Wednesday, 3rd December 2008

We, the undersigned members of the Name and Shame Corruption Networks (NASCON) Campaign, working with Bunge La Mwananchi, the Goro Goro Campaign (Hosted by the Citizens Coalition for Constitutional Culture – 4Cs) and other Civil Society networks throughout Kenya,

Concerned that the current crises facing the Kenyan nation have resulted from a leadership crisis and have caused much suffering to the citizens of this country,

Further convinced that the various problems facing Kenya such as the Internally Displaced Persons’ (IDPs) failed resettlement programme, the unnecessary controversy over implementation of the Waki report recommendations, criminal refusal by Members of Parliament to subject their allowances to taxation, as well as escalating food and commodity prices, are a pointer to a failed leadership,

Aware that our governance system and culture have been highly exploitative of Kenyans since colonial times and have pre-disposed the state to continued conflict and instability,

Concerned that there is concerted effort by political and business interests, including owners of large tracts of land, to stifle reform of the Kenyan state through a New Democratic Constitution, land and housing reforms, among other critical reform areas,

Aware that the Kenyan people have reached the peak of tolerance and have collectively challenged the status quo in various settings including the recent peoples’ actions in Lang’ata and Eastleigh areas of Nairobi,

Hereby, NOW, call on Kenyans to a boycott of oil and oil products on the 10th and 11th December 2008.

This is part of the national campaign to reclaim the Kenyan state from the forces of exploitation both national and international.

We call upon the people of Kenya to reclaim their rights by collectively forcing a reduction in the prices of oil in line with reductions in international oil prices.

We further call upon Kenyans to act collectively to stop the culture of exploitation by multinationals and to commit to reclaim Kenya from greedy political and business interests that have continued to stifle development through growth of the economy and realisation of fundamental rights of the Kenyan people, notably the right to food and life itself.

We note that despite continued decrease of the prices of oil at the international level, oil prices in Kenya have remained exploitative. Further, this has had a ripple effect on other sectors of the economy such commodities, transport, costs of electricity, among others. Commodities have now become unaffordable for a majority of Kenyans compromising the right to food and, by extension, the right to life itself;

We present the following programme of action to the people of Kenya:

10th December 2008

• Campaign begins officially – Kenyans to use the occasion of the International Human Rights Day to mobilise themselves through their various people institutions for the boycott action. Various opportunities including church and mosque summons, meetings in public places, meetings organised by various organisations, etc
• Kenyans to hold overnight vigils to symbolise their reclamation of the state
• Kenyans to picket outside the offices of various multinationals especially oil conglomerates

11th December 2008

• The official boycott day
• Kenyans to refrain from going to work
• Kenyans to refrain from boarding public transport vehicles
• Industry owners to close down their machines
• Public Transport Operators to withdraw their vehicles from the roads around the country

12th December 2008

• Kenyans to organise themselves in various areas to petition their leaders in public meetings celebrating Jamhuri day
• Kenyans to communicate their various grievances to their leaders in the various public meetings during Jamuhuri Day Celebrations
• Kenyans to congregate through their churches and mosques to further communicate messages of solidarity

We hereby call upon the Kenyan Government to undertake the following measures with utmost speed to address the suffering of Kenyans:

• Reduce the burden of taxes on Kenyans particularly through zero-rating of basic commodities
• Introduce a legal framework to regulate the activities of multinationals and transnationals so as to cub their exploitative designs
• Introduce appropriate legislation to protect Kenyan consumers from exploitation
• Immediately commence taxation of the allowances of Members of Parliament and earnings of other holders of public office

We note that the measures so far introduced by both Government (announcing prices of maize) and specific players in the oil industry (reduction of pump prices by Kshs.15 by Shell) are mere tokenism. Kenyans will reclaim the state through fundamental change not tokenism.

SIGNED THIS 3RD DAY OF DECEMBER

BY: