Foreign Ministry Principal Secretary Monica Juma. [PHOTO/The Star]
The Foreign ministry has denied claims that Kenya was demanding congratulatory messages for President Uhuru Kenyatta from foreign envoys.
This is after reports in a UK newspaper that Nairobi envoys had requested their host countries to write the congratulatory messages to Uhuru prior to his swearing in Tuesday next week.
Foreign Ministry Principal Secretary Monica Juma on Wednesday held a closed-door meeting with Nairobi-based foreign diplomats, further increasing speculation on the matter.
But she denied this and said it was part of their regular activities.
“Regularly we do briefings on the diplomatic issues that may arise. Today’s was the 15th diplomatic briefing session. So it’s not an unusual thing. We often meet even twice a month,” she said.
“We expect many countries to congratulate the President and that is normal. But we do not go on soliciting for such messages,” she said.
She dismissed the article in UK's newspaper Telegraph where the speculation first began.
"Foreign press have had unprecedented interest in Kenya’s elections and therefore the article by the Telegraph was no exception.”