AZIMIO coalition party leader Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka has accused the Kenyan government of directly interfering with his coalition’s internal democratic processes, claiming State House blocked the official publication of legitimate leadership changes in the Kenya Gazette.
In a statement released Saturday, Musyoka outlined what he describes as a deliberate attempt to undermine multiparty democracy in Kenya, alleging that despite following all legal procedures, the government prevented the gazettement of new AZIMIO leadership appointments scheduled for Friday, February 6, 2026.
According to Musyoka, three key appointments were legally made and duly accepted by the Office of the Registrar of Political Parties, with Stephen Kalonzo Musyoka serving as Party Leader, Caroli Omondi as Secretary General, and Philip Kisia as Executive Director.
“The facts are simple,” Musyoka stated. “Our changes were legally appointed. The Office of the Registrar of Political Parties accepted our changes. Local dailies published them last week.”
The former Vice President claims that despite this regulatory approval and public announcement, State House directly instructed the Government Printer to block the official gazette publication that would formalize these changes.
Musyoka drew particular attention to what he sees as a fundamental breach of commitments made during the National Dialogue Committee (NADCO) talks, which he co-chaired.
Among the 10 agenda items agreed upon was “Fidelity to the law on multiparty democracy.”
“I co-chaired those talks in good faith, believing we were building consensus on strengthening Kenya’s democratic institutions,” Musyoka said.
“Yet here we are, watching the same administration undermine the very principles we agreed upon.”
The NADCO talks were established to address political tensions following the 2022 elections and to strengthen Kenya’s democratic framework.
The AZIMIO leader framed the incident as part of what he describes as a consistent pattern by President William Ruto’s administration to weaken opposition structures.
“Ruto has consistently undermined opposition parties and coalitions,” Musyoka charged.
“This is yet another example of using state machinery to weaken political competition rather than competing on ideas and track record.”
He warned that the implications extend beyond AZIMIO itself: “When State House can arbitrarily stop the publication of legally constituted political party leadership, it’s not just AZIMIO under attack, it’s Kenya’s multiparty democracy itself.”
Musyoka announced that AZIMIO would pursue all available legal avenues to ensure the leadership changes are officially recognized.
“We will pursue all legal avenues to ensure our rightful leadership is gazetted,” he declared. “Democracy cannot function when those in power manipulate the rules to silence dissent.”
