• Speaker Justin Muturi said three county assemblies did not meet the requirements for submission of the draft bill.
•Whereas Baringo, which rejected the bill presented the certificate of rejection, the county assembly did not provide the copy of the draft bill.
Image: FILE
At least 30 county assemblies have submitted reports of how they voted on the BBI bill to Parliament.
Speaker Justin Muturi said three county assemblies did not meet the requirements for submission of the draft bill.
Whereas Baringo, which rejected the bill presented the certificate of rejection, the county assembly did not provide the copy of the draft bill.
The same was the case of Kwale and Nyamira, the latter presenting a bill which had clauses variant to the bill submitted by the IEBC to the county assembly.
Muturi said 14 counties are yet to deliver the draft bill with the certificate of approval of the same.
“At this moment it is difficult to determine whether Nyamira county assembly received the correct bill and amended it,” the speaker said.
Meanwhile, President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga are expected to hit the road to popularise the BBI referendum Bill from next week as they prepare for a public vote by June.
The Building Bridges Initiative secretariat on Tuesday unveiled an elaborate programme in which the two leaders will hold joint rallies for the first time.
The details emerged as Deputy President William Ruto's allies appeared to make a tactical retreat, insisting that their commander was not ready to spearhead a national 'No' campaign.
Ruto, a vocal critic of the law change, has remained unusually quiet after 40 county assemblies, including his Rift Valley backyard, almost unanimously endorsed the Constitution of Kenya (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
His allies claim some BBI proponents are keen to build momentum for the 2022 presidential contest and will use the referendum to corner the DP.
The BBI secretariat co-chaired by Suna East MP Junet Mohamed and former Dagoretti South MP Dennis Waweru on Wednesday said the nationwide BBI popularisation campaigns will begin on March 1.
A robust campaign to sensitise Kenyans on the contents of the Bill will involve town hall meetings and major rallies, the secretariat announced.
The secretariat on Wednesday held a strategy meeting with the leadership of Parliament led by Jubilee coalition joint secretary for parliamentary affairs Adan Keynan, Majority leader Amos Kimunya, Whip Emanuel Wangwe and his deputy Maoka Maore.
The technical team has segmented the country into 10 regions, each to have a campaign committee that will be responsible for popularising BBI.
The format, leadership and specifics of the 10 BBI popularisation committees will be released by Friday to give the leaders time to mobilise Kenyans for next week's campaign rollout.
The committees will coordinate BBI activities in their regions; some governors will be regional focus leaders.
They will be backed by MPs, senators and MCAs on county committees.
“We will embark on a vigorous campaign that will shake every corner of this country. We are going to reach every village in this country, talk to every man and woman to tell him or her why this document is good for this country," Junet said at Daraja House, after the meeting.
He added, “As you know, a referendum is just like an election, we must go out there and campaign. We are prepared for the campaigns.”
By Thursday, 41 of 47 county assemblies had passed the Bill, meaning it proceeds to Parliament where the two Houses are expected to endorse it within three weeks. Whatever Parliament says, the Bill will require a referendum.
Only Baringo and Nandi rejected the Bill.