Raila Odinga, former Prime Minister and leader of the Azimio one Kenya Alliance has declared Monday, March 20, a public holiday to allow Kenyans to participate in a mass action.
The announcement was made after a request from Azimio principal Martha Karua, Odinga’s running mate in 2022, to allow supporters to take part in the protests.
The ODM leader stated that the holiday would allow Azimio supporters who would normally go to work to join the protests and that it was necessary to ensure that the person chosen by the people was allowed to take over the leadership of the country.
Odinga also revealed that religious leaders had appealed to him to postpone the protest, a move that he stated the coalition would not accept. According to the Public Holiday Act, only the Interior Cabinet Secretary is mandated to declare public holidays through a Gazette Notice.
Moreover, the Act explains that employers are allowed to open their offices and call their employees to perform their duties required of them on a public holiday.
Kenya has eleven existing public holidays, namely: New Year, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Eid-al-Fitr, Labour Day, Madaraka Day, Eid-al-Ad
