Ruto allies express reservations about BBI report

Allies of Deputy President William Ruto have expressed reservations about sections of the BBI report but failed to outrightly declare whether they would oppose a referendum

The leaders picked holes in the report saying some proposed amendments will “take back the country to the dark days", while others do not require a referendum. 

Immediately after the report was unveiled on Wednesday, Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen described it as "a total sum of all the parochial attitudes and behaviour of politicians creating positions for themselves at the top".

“I have read the proposed BBI Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020, and in summary, it’s a total sum of all the parochial attitudes and behaviour of politicians creating positions for themselves at the top,” Murkomen said.

But his Kericho counterpart Aaron Cheruiyot said the BBI has some progressive proposals, as well as some hugely flawed governance issues.

"The best option is to build consensus, if not multi-choice referendum,” Cheruiyot said.

Of concern to the DP allies is the return of what they termed an imperial president who will have sweeping powers over both the Executive and Judiciary.

Majority of them hold the view that the reintroduction of a Prime Minister and two deputies does not cure the winner-takes-all notion as the president will most probably pick them from his or her party.

With Parliament having no role in the vetting and approval of the principal secretaries, they say it will be difficult to address inclusivity.

According to proposals in the report handed to President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga, the president will appoint a prime minister and two deputies from the largest party in Parliament.

The PM will be the head of government business in the National Assembly to oversee the legislative agenda of the government and supervise the execution of the functions of ministries and government departments.

The PM will also chair Cabinet committee meetings as assigned by the President and assign any of the functions of the office to the deputies who will be appointed by the president from among Cabinet ministers.

However, the Prime Minister and the two deputies will serve at the mercy of the president as he will have the powers to hire and fire.

Murkomen said it does not make sense for a presidential running mate to be powerless, yet he or she sought the votes with the president.

The former Senate Majority leader said while the report, which will be unveiled on Monday at Bomas of Kenya, is creating the position of the Official Opposition Leader, it will be an expensive structure of government.

He warned that the forces behind the BBI should not push for the changes with Ruto as the target.

“BBI constitutional amendment proposes that we retain a deputy president who is the running mate of the President and then appoint a PM with deputies who will enjoy more powers than the donkey DP who fought for votes. Someone thinks Ruto will be DP forever. This is a recipe for chaos,” he said.

He said the creation of the Judiciary Ombudsman is a step in the right direction, but said the officer holder should not be a presidential appointee. He suggested that the ombudsman should instead be reporting to the Judicial Service Commission.

“The Judiciary Ombudsman must, however, not be a conduit for the proposed imperial president to control the Judiciary through the backdoor,” Murkomen said.

The senator said the creation of extra constituencies from the current 290 to 360 plus the 94 senators will not only amount to overrepresentation but also weigh down the already huge wage bill.

Also at the centre of the issues that are likely to inform the direction Ruto allies will take is their intention to reject the proposal in the report for parliamentary parties to nominate commissioners to the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission.

Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria said at the moment, Uhuru and Raila have control over the two dominant parliamentary parties—Jubilee and ODM—and they will influence who gets the positions.

“By recommending that four out of seven IEBC commissioners be nominated by parliamentary political parties, this puts the control of the IEBC firmly under the grip of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Raila Odinga who have total control over the main parliamentary political parties. As potential contestants in 2022, this presents obvious problems,” Kuria said.

On the proposal to compel the government to pay contractors promptly, Kuria said he had already successfully sponsored amendments to the Public Procurement and Disposal Act.

He said the bill was to provide for prompt payment of all public sector suppliers within 60 days. That proposal is now incorporated in the BBI report.

Tharaka Nithi Senator Kithure Kindiki described the report as “too much flowery language and an attempt to rewrite the Constitution afresh”.

“It doubles the size of Parliament (wage bill) and seeks to reward ethnic chiefs from the five biggest ethnic communities (going by Kenya's voting pattern since Independence). Nothing to guarantee the inclusion of the other 39 ethnicities, not to mention that the underlying philosophy of the report is irredeemably flawed,” Kindiki said.

The former Senate deputy speaker said it is a fallacy to think that when “an ethnic kingpin is at the high table,” the entire community automatically prospers.

He said most of the issues covered in the report could have been achieved had the holders of office fully implemented Article 10 of the Constitution.

“The rest of the stuff suggested for constitutional amendment can be addressed by ordinary Parliamentary statutes. An appropriate Constitutional moment is lacking and if it exists, it is leaders-driven and not people-demanded. Equally, it is the leaders and not the masses who are obsessed with this Prime Minister thing,” he said.

Kapseret MP Oscar Sudi said there is nothing that currently prevents the President from asking Parliament to even allocate up to 50 per cent of the revenue to counties.

He said the 15 per cent was the minimum and that there was no ceiling on what counties should get. He accused Uhuru of failing devolution by holding on to devolved functions.

Sudi said the report is purely a game plan by both Uhuru and Raila to try and control power saying if indeed the President was genuine, he would have pushed for the changes immediately he took over power in 2013.

“The reason why we are in these problems is because Uhuru failed to commit to implementing the Constitution as required. Now his term is coming to an end, he wants to behave so good. He is the problem,” he said.

“This BBI process entirely benefits politicians and doesn't talk the issues concerning common mwananchi. The creation of unnecessary positions overburdens mwananchi instead of relieving them.”

Edited by P.O